Kiwi Steve in the NBA – May 4
Box Scores
@ SAS, G1 (L 124-92): 25 MINS, 9 PTS (4/7 FG, 1/2 FT), 10 REB, 1 BLK, 1 TO, 2 PF
@ SAS, G2 (W 98-97): 37 MINS, 12 PTS (5/6 FG, 2/2 FT), 17 REB, 1 STL, 1 BLK, 2 TO, 1 PF
Zach Lowe: “Thunder coach Billy Donovan should at least try Steven Adams on Aldridge, as he did now and then with Nowitzki. Adams is fast enough to track Aldridge around the perimeter, and burly centers have gotten under Aldridge's skin before. That would leave Ibaka on Duncan, and Thunder fans remember how Duncan tore apart that matchup down the stretch of the Spurs' Game 6 clincher in 2014. But that's life at this level. The best teams have counters for everything. You just have to find matchups that tilt the math a teensy bit your way, and shift between tactics enough so that no strategy gets stale. Using Ibaka on Duncan a bit would also leave the Thunder big closer to the rim, where he scares all comers.”
Wise words from one of the NBA’s finest scribes. Coming up against the San Antonio Spurs, this is as tough as it gets for this team but it is a rivalry that they’ve sparked in the past. The Thunder always back themselves and in they came to this series with a positive mindset.
It didn’t work. Kawhi Leonard started things off with a driving dunk and honestly the Thunder were just terrible. Defensively more than anything and Leonard, who came up sore after that first play but hardly looked troubled after that, and LaMarcus Aldridge were beyond magnificent. Soon they were up four, then six… then nine… then thirteen… come the end of the first quarter and the Spurs led 43-20. As if that wasn’t bad enough, they then won the second quarter by a further ten points. At one stage they were as many as 43 points ahead which is a playoff record for the Gregg Popovich Spurs. Sure, OKC clawed a few back in the last quarter but only with the benches out there. This was an absolute mauling and to go through the play by play would be masochistic but we can always look at what went wrong.
Durant scored 16, Westbrook 14. Durant was a -31 on the court, Westbrook -29. This was an example of what a brilliant team will do to you if you aren’t clued in off the ball and while Leonard’s 25 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists (shooting 10 of 13) looks amazing, even that wasn’t as dominant as Aldridge who scored 38 points on 23 shots (18 made FGAs). When two different guys are shooting that well then there is trouble all around and then add in that Danny Green shot 5/6 from three for 18 points.
It’d be nice to say that Adams had nothing to do with that but he and Ibaka were tasked with guarding LMA and it was not pretty. In fact with those two on him, Aldridge made 16 of his 19 shots when one of those two was guarding him. They passed 100 points in the third quarter. Four separate times the Thunder fouled a three point shooter in the first half alone.
Thunder FG%: 41.2
Spurs FG%: 60.7%
Thunder Assists: 23
Spurs Assists: 39
Steven Adams looked decent on the stats (apart from a shocking plus/minus as with the rest of the starters) as he scored 9 and rebounded 10 but his defence was not great. He looked uncomfortable straying too far from the hoop on LMA – who might be the best mid-range shooter in the NBA – and was constantly bumped out trying to get around screens. Read here on how dominant the Ginobili/Aldridge pick and roll was.
Daily Thunder: “[Adams] did his part, but his part isn’t enough to change the outcome of a game like this.”
Thunderous Intentions: “OKC had no answer for Aldridge. Steven Adams and Serge Ibaka both had their shots at him, but the Spurs had answered for both of them. San Antonio put Adams in pick-and-pop all night. Adams is a good defender, but he struggles getting out on shooting big men. When the Thunder responded by putting the more mobile Ibaka on him, Aldridge countered by taking him into the post.”
Steven Adams on G1 emotions: “Anger. Definitely anger. All the negative ones you can think of. That's exactly what the whole team's feeling. But then you have your little tantrum and you just get over it. You've just gotta let it go, learn from it and try to be more ready going into Game 2.”
But then the second game. Your theory is as good as anyone else’s but the Spurs just didn’t look right to start. After seeming like they couldn’t miss in the first game, they began 1/13 in the second and allowed the Thunder to get out to a decent lead early on despite not being especially great on offence themselves. Well, aside from Kiwi Steve that is, who emphatically got his account running with one of the highlight dunks of his season:
It really was surreal to see the Spurs flip the switch the wrong way – Westbrook was getting the ball in transition so often an just shredding his way to the basket, not finishing well but getting to the free throw line. End of the first quarter and OKC were up 29-21, Adams already with 7 rebounds and Westbrook with 14 points. Spurs pulled it back slightly with the bench units out there but still a shock lead.
Naturally the Spurs came right back into it though. With Kanter and Adams both on the floor, Steve was tasked with guarding LaMarcus Aldridge and there aren’t too many power forwards out there that can do that well, let alone a man used to guarding around the rim. So Aldridge went and made eight straight buckets and the Spurs took the lead. But then the Thunder took it back. He may have gotten beaten a couple times on defence (and others he player LMA well and simply say tough shots fall), but Adams was out there balling on offence. Three emphatic dunks in the half, he had 8p & 8r by half time with the Thunder leading 56-53 on the road. Aldridge’s 22 were a worry but Durant had 13 and Russ 18. Perhaps most pleasing was keeping Kawhi to 6 points on 3/7 shooting.
Through the third it was a coin toss, the game twisting back and forth – OKC up by nine when they rested Westbrook and soon that lead disappeared. The fourth quarter was the same. Seriously, this was possibly the game of the postseason so far. Aldridge scored 13 points in the final five mins on his way to 41 points – following those 38 in the first. Westbrook and Durant couldn’t quite match that number, KD with 28 and Russ with 29, but they were each outstanding in their own way. Now let’s skip to those dramatic last few minutes…
Dion Waiter countered a LMA three point play but Aldridge was right back at it to make it a 94-91 game with the clock ticking down. Durant missed a jumper and Duncan was able to wrestle off Adams and tip the rebound away, but Leonard couldn’t hit a three to tie and with 45 seconds remaining this time Adams got the board – his 17th – and OKC stopped the clock. Durant with the flipped jumper… Aldridge with the three in return. Westbrook to the line up two with 18 secs remaining. He made both but then Aldridge was fouled on a triple attempt. Crazy stuff when Aldridge is barely even a three point shooter and the dude made all three FTs– he was perfect from the line on the night. 98-97.
Which was about when things finally went completely bonkers. With an inbounds violation coming, Waiters pushed off Ginobili to create the room to throw the ball in. Even then it was a toss up and the Spurs managed to hustle the ball away but in no clear set they couldn’t get a decent shot off and time expired with a bunch of guys fighting for a loose ball under the hoop. There were probably three fouls each in the ensuing death throes but ultimately the Thunder won… controversially. Coach Popovich went OFF at the refs over the inbounds call, take a goof looksee here:
If you look closely at the bottom right of the vid, you can see also that a fan grabs Steven Adams by the arm and tries to hold him out of the play. Not especially cool, that.
However his effort to get back there with the Spurs on the break was beyond crucial. It was arguably the most important contribution of the night. And San Antonio did still get one attempt up, which Patty Mills threw well short with Steve’s right mitt in his face.
Another thing that can be noticed with a magnifying glass is that Manu Ginobili actually stepped on the line as Waiters inbounded. Which is also a foul. Safe to say there were fouls everywhere and it’s also been strongly suggested that the Spurs should have been able to get off a much better shot attempt against the defence they ended up facing. You almost expect them to come back tomorrow and play the last 18 seconds all over again so we can do it properly.
Ref Ken Mauer: "On the floor, we did not see a foul on the play. However, upon review we realize and we agree we should have had an offensive foul on the play. It's a play we've never seen before, ever. We should have had an offensive foul on the play."
But what isn’t debatable is that Adams had a fantastic game. So much better than his game one efforts, he was seriously dominant on the boards and he brought his A-game on offence too. Guarding LMA will never be easy and there are things he could have done a lot better there but he stuck it to Tim Duncan pretty well. Definitely his best playoff game yet.
NewsOK: “Adams, 22 but with the rugged mindset of a 31-year-old construction worker, was monstrous in the paint all night. He finished with 12 points, 17 huge rebounds, a pair of ferocious dunks and the biggest defensive play of the night. As Danny Green pushed the turnover upcourt, Adams stepped at him, forcing a pass over the top to Patty Mills. But Adams recovered, stoning a layup attempt and forcing a pass to Ginobili, who drove right at Adams. Adams shuffled back, stopped the drive and forced an over-the-shoulder pass to Mills in the corner. No one was near Mills. So Adams, incredibly mobile for a 7-footer, took one giant step and a leap, nearly getting a fingertip on Mills jumper and forcing an air ball into a mosh pit.”
Say, did you know he’s only 22 years old?
Kevin Durant on Adams: “We don’t really look at age here. Once you play in games and trust in situations, it’s just about going out there and doing it, no matter how old you are. When you get drafted by a veteran team, we expect you to grow quick and he has done a great job of that. Tonight, he was there for us all night. He was rebounding the basketball, playing tough interior defense. We are going to need him to continue to do that, he was locked in from the beginning.”
Welcome to Loud City: “Lastly, Steven Adams did phenomenal work on both ends of the court, finishing with 12 points and 17 boards and was a big reason why the previously porous OKC defense solidified in game 2.”
Daily Thunder: “Really though, how about Steven Adams in the final play? Recovered to stop the 3-on-1, then got out to Patty Mills on the 3, and may have even gotten a piece of it. Then a fan grabbed his arm and tried to hold him back.”