MIAMI — LeBron James had a pained expression on his face during warmups and left the court twice in the early going, once to get his ankle re-taped and another time for a bathroom break.

He was clearly not feeling his best.

His teammates didn’t seem to be making him feel any better, either.

James’ final numbers from Game 4 of the NBA Finals looked stellar on paper: 28 points, 10-for-17 shooting, 4 for 8 from 3-point range, and eight rebounds.

That alone just wasn’t anywhere near enough, and the Miami Heat are now in a colossal amount of trouble — the sort from which no team has ever successfully emerged before.

The Heat trail this title series 3-1 now, having been embarrassed at home once again by the San Antonio Spurs, who took command from the outset and beat Miami 107-86 on Thursday night. Game 5 is in San Antonio on Sunday night, when the reign of James and the Heat atop the NBA could end by being denied a third straight championship.

“The series is not over,” James said. “We’ve got guys with too much pride to even start thinking about that.”

No team in NBA Finals history has ever blown a 3-1 lead and James, an astute historian of the game, knows that stat all too well.

“We put ourselves in position where it is about making history,” James said.

The Spurs took control with balance, eight players scoring in the first quarter alone.