In the 2016 NBA General Manager survey, Thunder guard Russell Westbrook and center Steven Adams were voted in the top five toughest players in the league. When asked who was tougher, the Thunder’s All-Star didn’t hesitate.
“Steven for sure,” Westbrook blurted immediately.
There’s plenty of evidence to back that belief up over the past three seasons, even though Westbrook is perhaps the NBA’s most daring, fearless players in the league. Adams endures elbows, shoves and all assortment of physical play in the paint.
Even in his first game back from a sprained ankle, however, Adams showed not only his grit, but the way he’s elevated his game over the past few seasons since he entered the league. After a long run of play to try to get his wind back, Adams saw an errant Thunder shot bounce off the rim and soar high into the air. Adams bulled his way into position with his lower body, exploded off the ground and snared the ball with one hand. With one motion Adams leapt again, hammering home a monstrous one-handed dunk.
“Grown man game is all I can say,” Westbrook chuckled when asked about Adams’ incredible play. “He makes sure his presence is always felt in the middle.”
“He’s just a freak, bro,” guard Victor Oladipo said of his teammate Adams. “He’s a bruiser. Guys like that are always rewarded.”
The 23-year old center is coming into his own for the Thunder, and he’s raised his game when it has mattered the most. In the two seasons his team has made the playoffs so far in his career, Adams’ minutes and points per game have increased from his regular season averages. Last season, the big Kiwi scored 10.1 points and grabbed 9.5 rebounds in 30.7 minutes per game during the Thunder’s 18 playoff contests. Much of Adams’ success, of course, comes from his bond with Westbrook on the court.
“Some of the things we were trying to do offensively last year to start the year, it took those guys some time to develop that rapport,” Donovan said. “I really thought as the season went on, Steven got more comfortable in those spots and areas of the floor having a feel of what Russell was going to do or what was open for him. They’ve created a great combination in pick and rolls together.”
So far in the preseason, Westbrook has assisted on seven of Adams’ 19 made baskets, including the first five buckets that Adams scored in his return to action against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Nov. 16. In just 19 minutes per game in the preseason, the fourth-year center is averaging 14.7 points and 7.0 rebounds.
To generate buckets, not only for himself but for the team, Adams often screens out top for Westbrook, with the timing just right to get the opposing defenders out of sync. That in turn creates either a gash in the defense for Westbrook to attack the rim or find Adams on a roll to the bucket.
“They communicate very well,” Donovan said. “Adjustment-wise when those two guys are in screening action together, they’re able to play off of each other and they know each other pretty well. That helps and it only gets better the more time they spend doing that.”
“Steven is doing a lot better job in and around the basket, scoring and using his size in there,” Donovan added. “Russell has done a great job finding him.”
Adams also registered four blocks in his breakout game of the preseason against Minnesota, reminding fans in Oklahoma City that his calling card isn’t on the offensive end, but in his defensive coverages and ability to protect the rim. That will always be his number one objective, but as he’s grown he’s been able to expand his role within the Thunder’s team concept. Now, instead of just finishing lobs for dunks or catching and finishing with layups, Adams has shown an ability to swing the ball from one side of the floor to the other and even hit Westbrook with slick passes on backdoor cuts.
“He’s obviously a big, big part of our team on both sides of the floor,” Westbrook gushed. “Being able to contest at the basket and use his size. He has great touch around the rim. I think people are going to really see a side of him that they haven’t seen before. He’s improved his game. He’s gotten smarter learning different things. He and I have created some type of unity because he knows where I like to go to get him easy buckets as well.”
Adams has also shown a knack for scoring from other areas in the paint besides right around the rim. Oftentimes defenses try to close off those dives to the bucket, sending a defender over to stop Adams in his tracks. So far in the preseason, and in flashes during the 2015-16 campaign, he took floaters in the lane, push shots and showed off some back to the basket post-skills, which he again demonstrated by going up-and-under on Denver’s Nikola Jokic twice in the Thunder’s Nov. 18 preseason clash.
“I was just throwing them up bro, seeing what happens,” Adams chuckled, deflecting credit per usual. “It turned out okay. I didn’t get in trouble or anything.”
As much as Adams wants to sidestep the praise of his ever-growing talents, which assistant coach Mark Bryant has helped him realize, it’s a simple matter of fact that Adams’ role within the Thunder’s system will be huge this season.
The connection that he and Westbrook have on the floor is a legitimate go-to option on nearly every offensive set, thanks to how their on-and-off court relationship has blossomed over the years. At this early stage of the season, however, Adams is intent on finding ways to turn that downhill one-two punch into a dynamic menace for defenses that involves all five Thunder players at once.
“It’s just one of those things that obviously works. As long as we have that, it’s great,” Adams explained. “But everything else is still there and the other three guys are lethal as well. We’re good with it because I’ve played with him, but now what we’re trying to do is bring in the other guys as well, especially the new guys, to make sure it’s a constant five-man threat.”
