Kiwi Steve in the NBA #19: Snitches Get Rebounds
BOX SCORES
at DALLAS MAVERICKS (W 111-110 OT)
38 MINS | 9 PTS (4/4 FG, 1/1 FT) | 12 REB | 2 AST | 1 BLK | 4 TO | 4 PF
at PHOENIX SUNS (W 124-116)
33 MINS | 11 PTS (5/8 FG, 1/3 FT) | 7 REB | 1 AST | 1 STL | 2 BLK | 1 TO | 2 PF
at PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS (L 108-100)
36 MINS | 12 PTS (4/9 FG, 4/6 FT) | 7 REB | 1 AST | 2 STL | 1 BLK | 1 TO | 4 PF
vs HOUSTON ROCKETS (L 122-112)
38 MINS | 16 PTS (7/9 FG, 2/3 FT) | 8 REB | 1 AST | 3 STL | 3 TO | 3 PF
NEXT WEEK
vs PHOENIX SUNS, Friday at 2.00pm (NZT)
vs SAN ANTONIO SPURS, Sunday at 2.30pm (NZT)
vs SACRAMENTO KINGS, Tuesday at 1.00pm (NZT)
at ATLANTA HAWKS, Wednesday at 12.30pm (NZT)
at DALLAS MAVERICKS
It did not take long for Oklahoma City to figure out that they’re a lot better than the 2017-18 Dallas Mavericks. Trailing 9-4 early, they then went on a 24-5 run, begun with a converted and-one for Steven Adams before the OK3 took matters into their own hands by combining for their team’s next 21 points to complete the scoring run – which ended exactly as Adams and Westbrook took their breathers on the bench, Dwight Powell suddenly throwing down a couple dunks with Steve temporarily out of the picture.
By the way, that block made it seven games in a row with at least one for Funaki. That tied his career best streak and he’d go on to break said streak later in the week. Hardly gonna add to his MVP case but it’s always nice to make an impact.
The lead was still 11 points at the half. The Thunder were looking like they could do this in their sleep, Adams came back and started inhaling offensive rebounds while Westbrook was scoring for fun. The half-time entertainment then featured a sloth act – not even joking – and perhaps the visitors took that ‘could do this in their sleep’ thing too literally because they came out in the third and played with about as much energy as that sloth had.
It seems like it would be cruel to relive too much of this game, so suffice to say that the Thunder got dumb and the Mavs got smart. A 33-23 3Q for DAL made it close and Powell’s layup in the final second took us to overtime. Allowing a team with less than 20 wins in March to shoot 65% from the field in the third seems like a reckless thing to do. Also reckless is continuing to brick shots from range when you’ve got a centre who’d shoot 4/4 in this game against a team without a true-sized centre.
Adams still found ways to stay involved and his offensive rebounding prowess was rarely as important as it was here. Being able to salvage bad shots with extra possessions ensured that the Thunder got away with it in the end. Dennis Smith Jr. had a chance to win it in overtime but missed from 16-feet. Ugly as hell yet at least they got away with it.
Daily Thunder: “However, despite the stars boasting the stat lines, it was Steven Adams who is most responsible for the Thunder victory. His 9 points and 12 rebounds (9 offensive) were all monstrously instrumental in the outcome, as his ability to create more opportunities on the offensive glass buoyed a Thunder offense that was pathetic for most of the second half. Simply put — OKC loses this game if Adams isn’t out there throwing his body in every which direction.”
Russell Westbrook: “He’s the best rebounder in the league. [Steve] does an amazing job of getting himself in position, using his body, sacrificing his body and keeping balls alive.”
Westbrook finished with 30 points on 11/25 shooting with 11 rebounds, 3 steals and 7 assists. He also had 9 turnovers and missed all five three-pointers. Paul George scored 23 with 11 rebounds and Melo added 12 points on 5/14 shooting. Adams had a perfect, if limited, shooting night but rebounded like Wilt the Stilt. Also spare a word for Jerami Grant, with 12 off the bench. He’s slowly emerging as a reliable bench scorer. Dallas got by with 26 points to the ever-reliable Harrison Barnes as Dwight Powell had a great game for 21 points and 8 boards and rookie Dennis Smith Jr. added 17 with 6 assists. Also Dirk Nowitzki scored 12 points with a game-high +10 +/- yet only played 24 minutes because: tanking.
Thunderous Intentions Player Grades: STEVEN ADAMS (B+)
“What’s not to love about Steven Adam’s gritty and dominating performance on the interior this evening? His stat line reads real pretty, going 4-4 from the floor, and collecting 9 (!) offensive rebounds that contributed to his 12 total boards on the night. The Big Kiwi played tough around the basket tonight and was a big reason (possible understatement) why OKC was able to total up 25 second chance points. Without his work on the glass getting the Thunder second and third looks at the rim, the Thunder might have suffered a frustrating loss at the hands of a lesser team.”
at PHOENIX SUNS
Much like the Mavericks, the Suns are simply not a good team. And not content with not being a good team, their idea is to become a worse team so that they can eventually get better. Tanking never made much logical sense but as long as draft picks are incentivised the way they are then this is what’ll happen. The NBA might change things soon. This year is certainly worse than ever before. The fact was that it was in both teams’ best interests to see a Thunder win here.
How then that Oklahoma City managed to give up 37 points in the first quarter is a mystery. Suffice to say that while a front office fancies a few extra losses, players always play to win and when OKC start things this lethargically then no game is automatic. Devin Booker was the main culprit, becoming the third youngest player in history to 4,000 points along the way, behind only LeBron James and Kevin Durant (and dropping Carmelo Anthony down to fourth). He had 21p/7r/4a in the first two quarters alone as the Suns led 67-60 at HT. Booker then scored the first 11 points of the 3Q for Phoenix.
Steven Adams had a minimal impact outside his usual heavy screen game. Even his rebounding was down, the Suns choosing to stack the paint and cut down those offensive rebounds and despite having Tyson Chandler still out injured they did a better job of that than most teams. That tactic also puts doubt in Russell Westbrook’s mind over feeding that ball inside to him hence Steve had only three rebounds and three points in the first half. Hardly ideal, although at least there was Russell Westbrook.
Russ is often one of the guys that slums it with his defensive effort but when he gets locked in at the other end he can be unstoppable. The Suns can’t defend much at the best of times, so it was Rusty Buckets to the rescue in the second half. It was largely due to his playmaking that the Thunder got back within two going into the fourth and then he let his bench go to work. A 10-2 run to start the 4Q swung it in the Thunder’s favour. Booker made sure we were tied with four and a half to play but OKC bossed it from that point, closing on a 14-4 run including the last 10 points of the game. Wipe that sweat away, amigo/amiga, they got the W in the end.
Westbrook was insane with 43 points on 16/25 shooting. Add in 14 rebounds and 8 assists as well. Ably aided by Paul George and his 20 points while Adams ended up with 11p & 7r and a few crucial plays towards the end. Not so great from Carmelo Anthony who scored 14 points on 18 shots. For Phoenix it was Booker with 39 points who led the way, while Josh Jackson and TJ Warren each added 19s.
Thunderous Intentions Player Grades: STEVEN ADAMS (B+)
“The Westbrook – Adams pick and roll is about as close to perfection as it gets. The only problem is the team needs to run it more often. Perhaps Russ and Steven need to be a little selfish and instead of trying to get their teammates rolling just keep running it until teams stop it. In fairness, Coach Jay Triano did pay the Westbrook-Adams PNR respect as Adams spent a good portion of the game getting double teamed. So, when you boast a trio of Russ, PG 13 and Melo, but Adams is the guy you choose to double-team it speaks to the respect he garners.
Pull up any segment of the game and it’s impossible to go longer than a minute without a play where four Suns are surrounding Adams in the paint. This was partially why his offensive rebounds were less than normal. In spite of this he was able to deflect several out to teammates with Westbrook being the recipient on several occasion.”
at PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS
Then after a couple narrow wins against teams that preferred to lose anyway, the Thunder had themselves a chance to earn a narrow win that’d actually help their reputation here in Portland. No Carmelo Anthony, he was rested, though new comrade Corey Brewer kitted up for the first time. Copped a bit of heat for that signing but he’s a buyout dude for bench depth, did people expect Kawhi Leonard or Jimmy Butler?
Anyway, without Melo the Thunder nonetheless started hot, shooting at better than 50% in the first quarter on the way to a 28-25 lead. Adams helped that early spurt with a few layups as did Patrick Patterson, starting for Melo, with a slick three pointer. Then Corey Brewer checked in and OKC went nearly two minutes without scoring… but that’s probably just a coincidence. He’d finish scoreless in 12 minutes with one rebound, one assist and four fouls, although he hasn’t even practiced with the team yet so gotta cut him some slack.
Shabazz Napier put Portland back on top early in the second despite some of that increasingly common early quarter goodness from Ray Felton. Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum make for one of the most dangerous offensive backcourts out there so no shocker that they largely had their way with what’s not been a particularly good OKC defence lately. More surprising is that the Thunder couldn’t get much from Steven Adams here. For his recent standards he was very average and for once it wasn’t down to getting ignored. He was getting looks and not converting. 4 of 9 from the field he was in this game, his worst FG% since the All Star break. Meanwhile he had to witness Jusuf Nurkic, his old enemy, put Portland up by nine mid-second… perhaps that’s what led to this?
What a dick! Good to know that Russ had got Steve’s back though, regardless of whether he’s going up against a dude like six inches taller than him or not. Nurkic was called for the foul and after the review Westbrook was given a tech as well for inciting things. It was controversial. Steve was nonchalant about the whole thing afterwards.
Westbrook regathered himself to get OKC back within three at HT but this was not his game. Other than a couple flourishes in the first half and a highlight reel block on Lillard in the third he was voluble but inefficient. He needed 31 shots to score 30 points while his buddy Paul George, usually so brilliant from range, was 0/7 with his 3pters, shooting them like it was All Star weekend all over again.
2Patt hit another three to have OKC briefly in front in the third but then Portland stretched it out to double figures. The Thunder may have had their chances late on in this one but they were always playing from behind in that second half and it showed. Not at the level they needed to be at to beat a fellow playoff-bound team. Portland did ‘em by eight.
Westbrook shot 12/31 for his 30p/11r/6a while Paul George scored 21 from 8/19 shooting. Between them they made 1 triple from 12 attempts. Meanwhile the other dynamic duo of Lillard and McCollum crushed. Dame had 20 points and 7 assists, McCollum had 28 points and 6 assists and they brought Evan Turner (17pts) along for the ride. Rookie Zach Collins will be happy with his work as well, having to foot it with Kiwi Steve at the end there. Adams still had a block though, extending that streak to nine games.
Thunderous Intentions Player Grades: STEVEN ADAMS (C)
“He played. He was fine. He tried to set screens for Paul George to get him wide open threes. But Paul George just missed another three. Why they don’t go to Adams more often in the post is beyond me. But I guess George needs to keep missing threes.”
vs HOUSTON ROCKETS
Oh sweet so after barely beating a couple teams that weren’t even really trying to win and then losing to a team around a similar level to them, next up was trying to avoid being the Houston Rockets’ fiftieth win of the season. A team that’s won 15 games in a row, a team that hasn’t lost since January. A team with both Chris Paul and James Harden doing incredible things.
More than a fearful prospect… yet apparently Harden still has some Thunder tendencies because his Rockets pulled out the sloth act themselves by allowing 13 straight points in the middle of the opening frame. Harden was the one who ended it, converting a three-point play (foul called on Steven Adams), but the early signs from Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony were solid. Just, ah… not a lot else, and a 17-8 lead became a 26-24 deficit by the time the first buzzer sounded. And this is what was becoming of their two best defenders…
The net quarter brought more of the same. Carmelo Anthony came back with some big buckets, scoring 11 of OKC’s last 15 points in the half. He had 19 all up after two quarters while shooting at 7/11 from the field, proving that Rest Is Best. Russell Westbrook may have turned the ball over a few times too many but at least he was scoring too. 7/13 for his 14 points.
The rest of the Thunder? 12 points on 4/18 shooting. Paul George’s recent struggles were continuing while Adams only got up one shot in the half, which he missed. Didn’t have an offensive rebound in the first two frames either for which you’d have to credit a difficult Rockets team with keeping him busy but also a snapshot Thunder offence not moving the ball well enough for him to get his inside positioning. Seems he was more worried with the officiating though (him and the rest of that team, OKC players & refs shan’t be trading Xmas cards this year).
Naturally then Steven Adams and Paul George got the first couple buckets of the third for OKC. Kiwi Steve was much more involved in that 3Q, bagging 9 points on 4/4 shooting. Corey Brewer scored some points as well. The new guy was even tasked with guarding James Harden a couple times, good luck with that bro.
The Oklahoman: “Paul George and Steven Adams were in a funk. The Rockets' offense wasn't, so when the Thunder came out of halftime, it had a clear objective. George picked up a screen from Adams. George passed to Adams at the free throw line and cut to the basket, Adams finding him for a neat give-and-go in close quarters. George drove into the teeth of the Rockets defense and dropped a bounce pass behind his back to Adams for a layup.”
Definitely the Thunder’s best offensive quarter… except that deficit only got larger as their defence drowned against a team shooting 15/26 from 3pt range in the first three. An Adams two-pointer closed it with three points midway through the quarter but Chris Paul was pulling all the strings out there. Over the next four minutes the Rockets went on a 15-3 run.
Which meant that Oklahoma City were down by 13 entering the fourth, time for a crazy comeback? Haha… no. The lead was up to 18 points before Adams checked back in and they never did figure out a way to slow down the Rockets from scoring. Nobody really has this season. Every little spurt of their own was matched and then some with easy offence, seemingly picking their shots at will. The triples were falling all day but it was also concerning how simply they could slice through to the hoop as well.
Like this example, where Melo gets thoroughly beaten by Harden for a layup, then turns and yells at Steven Adams wondering why he didn’t step across as the help. So Adams casually points at Paul George, snitching him out as the one who cheated (Adams was working on Nene).
Meanwhile that blocking streak of his came to a rough end. Adams had 3 steals but couldn’t get his hand on a shot despite a few where a more aggressive defender might have done so. That’s not really how Adams plays, to be fair. He’s more about keeping things simple and there’s a reason his foul rates have gotten much better over the years.
Rockets won it 122-112. They shot 17 of 33 from deep and Chris Paul made 5/6 of them. He topped with 25 points and 5 assists while Harden had 23p & 11a. Five other dudes all scored in double figures. OKC got 32 points out of Westbrook and 23 from Melo (who shot 1/7 in the second half, adding further fuel to the rest theory). Paul George ended up with 17 and Adams with 16, both were way more effective in the second half, but as the defensive leaders they’ll be rather pissed at allowing Houston to progressively score more points in every successive quarter, not to mention that the visitors shot 34 free throws to 11 for OKC – most of those coming in the fourth quarter. Probably gotta say it went as expected then.
SLAM DUNKS
Complex’s 9 Dirtiest Players in the NBA:
”For some reason, a lot of NBA players just don’t like Steven Adams. During the 2013-14 season alone, six players were ejected for hitting him. Is it because of his bone-crunching screens? His New Zealand accent? His inability to shave? He’s been hit in the groin twice by Draymond Green and once by Joe Ingles and has gotten into numerous scuffles, most recently with Khris Middleton.
But let’s not paint Adams as a victim. He’s had his fair share of mishaps. Earlier this season, he sent a karate kick to Bradley Beal’s private parts, and in 2016, NBA players and coaches rated him the second dirtiest player in the league. A Western conference coach once told the Los Angeles Times that "the stuff that he does is not cool. He throws elbows, extra hitting dudes away from the ball, hitting them with the chicken wing [elbow] and trying to get a rise out of them." That may be the reason why he’s drawn so many ejections.”
Vice Sports: “Next up is Steven Adams, Oklahoma City’s true third wheel and a strategy-altering force on the offensive glass. Watching Adams over the last few weeks, it's clear that he's so much more than a harmonious role player. The 24-year-old may be solidifying himself as an authentic star before our very eyes. How many center are more indispensable? Joel Embiid and...is that it?
It’s one of the more significant narrative arcs to emerge this season. Powerful enough to alter Oklahoma City’s trajectory in a very favorable way over the next few years. For now, Adams’s lumberjackian strength takes over games whenever he sets a screen 28 feet from the rim, or wedges in-between two opponents who need a cattle prod to box him out. His touch from just outside the restricted area makes him a hypnotically reliable roll man, and he’s become an agile razor wire on the defensive end.”
Sure. But have you ever noticed how many jump-balls Steven Adams wins?
Usual closer, make sure you slap an ad while you’re here so that TNC can keep doing this stuff, cheers.