He watched with a smile high above the Oracle Arena floor on Monday night as Klay Thompson scored an NBA season-high and career-best 60 points in three quarters for the Golden State Warriors in a 142-106 win against Indiana – the highest Warriors scoring performance since Barry’s.

Not that you will ever find Attles playing favorites when it comes to special games by individual players. Don’t even try. He coached the Warriors to their first championship since moving West in 1975, then Golden State won again 40 years later in 2015.

”I’ve seen a 100-point game,” Attles said from his seat during a late timeout. ”Rick was such a great player and he cared about winning. In order to score the number of points he scored you have to have help from your teammates. I try to look at them individually because once you start comparing, someone is always going to be No. 2. Let’s give him his credit.”

Attles joked he passed to Chamberlain for all those points. He actually had six assists, while Guy Rodgers had 20 of the team’s 39 overall in the 169-147 win against the Knicks at Hershey, Pennsylvania.

”I think 50,” Attles said with a chuckle of his assists total in the record-setter. ”I don’t know. Guess what? We won the game. That’s all that matters.”

While Attles – who is in his 57th year with the Warriors and recently celebrated his 80th birthday with extra-large cupcakes at Oracle – was close with Chamberlain, when people ask about the 100-point performance, he still keeps it separate from other sensational showings like the onslaught by Thompson in just 29 minutes and three quarters against the Pacers.

”Because I played with Wilt, people always ask, `What do you think about Wilt scoring 100 points?’ I say, `Give him credit for what he did then,”’ said Attles, now a community ambassador for the franchise in regular attendance at games.

”It’s like apples and oranges. They’re both good fruit. It’s a matter of what you like. I was very close to Wilt, but you have to enjoy what they did that night. I enjoy any great performance. I’m very happy to be here tonight.”

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Teams with a 3-1 lead are 32-0 in the finals, according to information provided to the league by Elias. So the Warriors don’t have to be reminded of the importance of Game 4 against Cleveland on Thursday night.

”I think we all know it’s really urgent,” guard Klay Thompson said. ”No one wants to go down 3-1.”

LeBron James has scored 40 or more in two of the three games while playing more than 47 minutes per game for an undermanned team. He appeared exhausted Wednesday, though that will be worth it if he can deliver the Cavaliers their first NBA title.

”You just try to give everything that you have to your teammates and live with the results,” James said. ”For me, I just try to put it all on the line to a point where win, lose or draw, you’re satisfied with the outcome.”

Here are things to watch in Game 4:

SHIFTING STRATEGY?: The Warriors haven’t done much double-teaming of James, but coach Steve Kerr acknowledged they may have to change their tactics with the way he is scoring.

”As far as our coverage on LeBron, yeah, you have to evaluate everything,” Kerr said. ”You have to look at your options. You have to think about if you take something away, what you’re giving up, that kind of stuff.

”We’ve lost two games in a row in the series, so we have to look at everything. It may mean we change some things. It may not.”

NEED FOR SPEED: Golden State is averaging just 11.7 fast-break points in the finals, after averaging more than 20 in every other playoff series. The Warriors’ starters had none in Game 4, as Cleveland has played a deliberate pace on offense and gotten back quickly on transition defense.

”Yeah, if you look at it, our defense has pretty much done its job. It’s just offensively for some reason we haven’t, even when we get stops and rebounds, we haven’t been successful getting a ton of fast-break points,” Warriors forward David Lee said.

”We’ve been in this same position down 2-1 at Memphis against a great veteran team in Memphis that attempted to do the same thing Cleveland is doing. That’s slow the game down, grind it out, and play to their strengths. That’s exactly what Cleveland’s trying to do. I have faith that we’re going to come out and play the right way tomorrow and then this series is right back to square one.”

WHAT’S THE SECRET? James has a secret, and not even one of his best friends in the NBA could get him to make it public.

Besides wanting to win another championship, James said earlier in the series he had another motivation he wouldn’t reveal. Not even to Dwyane Wade, who was working the Game 3 postgame show for ESPN and interviewed his former teammate.

”And he tried to get the secret motivation out of me, and I didn’t give it to him either, even though I told him (privately),” James said. ”But he won’t tell you guys, though. He won’t tell you all until hopefully after this is all over.”

DELLY’S DUTIES: Matthew Dellavedova is expected to be ready to go after needing treatment for cramping and dehydration following Game 3. He played more than 38 minutes in that one and Cavaliers coach David Blatt said the team would keep an eye on him.

”But he’ll be out there and we’ll just monitor how he’s doing,” Blatt said. ”I’m not going to come in there with a specific minute restriction, but we’ll definitely be conscious of it.”

GREEN’S GUESS: Draymond Green, expected to play after getting treatment for back spasms, was asked what to expect from the Warriors at the start of Game 4.

”Just a more spirited team. More intensity,” he said. ”I’m not saying that, hey, we’re going to come out and make every shot. Who knows? Shots may fall, they may not. But I’m willing to bet if our intensity level is higher, the shots go in.”

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