How the 4th straight Warriors-Cavs Finals stacks up to previous editions

This is new territory. Not even the legendary battles between Magic Johnson's Lakers and Larry Bird's Celtics in the '80s featured in four straight NBA Finals.

Yet, while another championship series between the Cavaliers and Warriors may foster some viewer fatigue, the last three years have proven that people continue to watch in droves.

If there is, in fact, a dampener, it's the widespread belief that LeBron James' Cavaliers will merely be sacrificial lambs in the Warriors' hunt for their third NBA title in four years.

That could absolutely be true. This is the weakest team James has dragged to The Finals since the 2007 Cavs team supplemented by Larry Hughes and Drew Gooden (and swept by the San Antonio Spurs). The Warriors are massive Vegas favorites heading into this series, with many predicting it will be a repeat of last season's gentleman's sweep - minus the "gentleman."

So how will this year's matchup be different than previous editions?

Some roster turnover can be expected every year, but Cleveland's offseason trade of Kyrie Irving and midseason remake took that to the extreme. Of the 13 Cavs to suit up in last year's Finals, only five remain with the team. There's little question their overall talent level is lower, too, while the Dubs' core remains the same as in 2017.

Nine of 24 players remain on both rosters from the two teams' first Finals meeting in 2015.

One of them is Kevin Love, whose status remains unknown after he suffered a concussion in Game 6 of the East finals against the Celtics. The Cavs clearly need their top rebounder and second-leading scorer to have any real chance, but they can at least look back to circumstances in 2015 strategically.

That year, Love was lost for the postseason in the first round and Irving went down after Game 1 of The Finals with a knee injury. It left James to work in isolation for the remainder of the series, and while Cleveland lost in six, they actually had a 2-1 lead with James posting a ludicrous 41 percent usage rate.

As was proven once again in the Eastern Conference playoffs, the Cavs go as far as James carries them. It will take nothing short of a monumental performance from him to give Cleveland even a fighting chance in this series, but keep in mind the 2015 Finals turned in the Dubs' favor after a lineup decision involving Andre Iguodala.

With the Warriors trailing 2-1, assistant coach Nick U'Ren suggested to Steve Kerr that they start Iguodala over center Andrew Bogut. The move paid off, with, among other things, Iguodala defending James brilliantly, and it solidified the dominance of the pre-Kevin Durant "Death Lineup."

Now, Iguodala is on the shelf with a leg injury, reportedly unsure of when he'll play again.

The Warriors operate on a higher level, though - one that, with the exception of the Cavs' 2016 championship, tends to foil James' exploits. With Iguodala missing the last four games of the Western Conference finals, they used his replacement, Kevon Looney, as a master screener. The Rockets weren't going to respect Looney's shot, so leaving him alone in the corner probably appeared fine until Stephen Curry darted behind his pick and buried a trey.

From a defensive standpoint, the Warriors caught a break with Houston missing Chris Paul in Game 7. Against Cleveland, they'll face a supposed sharpshooting squad that's run hot and cold in the playoffs. Kyle Korver shot just 29.1 percent from deep on the road in the East finals, while J.R. Smith hit only 29.4 percent of his threes overall.

Then there's the team defense. Much like last year, the Warriors are good at it, and the Cavaliers aren't.

So, in a broad sense, even with the Cavaliers losing Irving and the Warriors adding Durant, not much has changed over the years. The Warriors have won two of three Finals meetings, and all signs point to them making it three of four.