BOX SCORES

vs NEW YORK KNICKS (W 105-84):

30 MINS | 12 PTS (5/5 FG, 2/3 FT) | 5 REB | 1 AST | 5 STL | 3 BLK | 1 TO | 3 PF

at UTAH JAZZ (L 96-87):

32 MINS | 9 PTS (3/6 FG, 3/6 FT) | 5 REB | 1 TO | 1 PF

at MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES (L 115-113):

35 MINS | 17 PTS (8/12 FG, 1/1 FT) | 13 REB | 3 AST | 1 STL | 2 BLK | 2 TO | 1 PF

NEXT WEEK

vs INDIANA PACERS, Thursday 1.00pm (NZT)

at MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES, Saturday 1.00pm (NZT)

at CHICAGO BULLS, Sunday 1.00pm (NZT)

at MILWAUKEE BUCKS, Wednesday 1.00pm (NZT)

vs NEW YORK KNICKS (W 105-84):

Ah yes, the first game of the season. A massive relief for the lot of us… and a bit of an emotional one for the teams involved here as well. Just as Kyrie Irving made his Boston Celtics debut against his old Cleveland Cavaliers team, the Oklahoma City Thunder hosted the New York Knicks to tip each of their 2017-18’s off – meaning it was Carmelo Anthony and Enes Kanter (and Doug McDermott) against their old team. Steven Adams and Enes Kanter immediately reunited!

Eh… not so fast there with the friendly vibes though, chieftain…

The Knicks were a decent opposition to begin things against. Not a team expecting to push for the playoffs as they rebuild around Kristaps Porzingis. Obviously the big Latvian was gonna cause issues for Steve and the lads but it wasn’t likely they’d be able to withhold the debut of the OK3. True enough it was Carmelo Anthony who began things with a triple, followed by Adams getting the and-one… though he missed the bonus shot. It was Enes Kanter who fouled him too, haha.

Things got a bit sloppy after that. Melo and PG weren’t hitting their shots and Westbrook was barely even taking his. At least there was some quality Adams vs Kanter to watch for though.

Porzingis helped the Knicks to a 31-28 lead early in the second but then OKC turned it on, outscoring them 25-11 over the next nine minutes into the half – capped by PG’s dunk on the buzzer. There was also a remarkable number of steals for Steven Adams. He was sticking his hand in the cookie jar for sure but he also stepped across on a Frank Ntilikina to pick it off like an NFL cornerback at one point. He’d end the game with 5 steals, he’s only once had more (he had 6 in a win over the Nuggets in 2014).

That opened things up and when Adams and Roberson slammed down consecutive alley-oops on lobs from Russ (with a Kanter travel call in between) that pretty much ended it. OKC extended the lead to 20 points after three quarters and closed it out from there, no worries.

Credit to Steve here. He filled out that box score like he fills out those jandals of his. 12 points without a miss with 5 boards and 5 steals. Add in 3 blocks and he did a bit of everything. He was a 26 while on the court too. Meanwhile Westbrook had 21p/10r/16a, Melo scored 22 and PG had 28. Porzingis topped the bill with 31 but Enes Kanter’s 10 points was the next best anyone on the Knicks had to offer.

Thunderous Intentions Player Grades: “Adams had himself a game, finishing with 12 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 5 steals and 3 blocks. The 24-year old’s IQ continues to evolve as he makes smart, calculated decisions on switches. Kanter and O’Quinn couldn’t handle the Big Kiwi’s physicality and he controlled the boards when on court. He needs more touches in the post and needs to be more aggressive as a rebounder. However, Adams had a standout game and was OKC’s best player.”

Thunder Digest: “Steven Adams presence in the starting five is crucial on defense and offense with his size and his athleticism. On the defensive side of the ball, Adams had five steals and was able to switch efficiently. On offense, his pick and roll play with Westbrook was back to its absolute best as also was their connection on Westbrook backdoor lobs. Adams finished with 12 points, five rebounds and one assist shooting 5-of-5 field goals at 100 percent three blocks five steals on 29:36 minutes.”

Here’s a beautiful moment, The Stache Bros embracing after going head to head for the first time since Enes’ Utah days. It’s nice to think they probably shared a full palette of fine halal cuisine on the town afterwards. He and Alex Abrines definitely waited outside the away team locker room to say g’day to him. Viva la Stache Bros.

NewsOK: “Kanter got a long, loud ovation when he was announced among the Knicks starters. And he didn't get the hard elbow he'd been promised from Adams, his former teammate and Stache Bro. ‘He was just kind pushing me and elbowing me a little,” Kanter said. “It wasn't really nothing hard.’”

Daily Thunder: “There was a point in the second quarter where Enes Kanter posted-up Adams on the left block and began to go to work. Adams baited Kanter into turning the ball over, then laughed at the Turkish big man as they made their way back down the floor. As good as Kanter is down low, Adams was simply better all night”

ESPN Fantasy: “Adams didn't record a five-steal game all of last season and collected just seven games with at least three blocks. So, Thursday's game was certainly an outlier in that respect. Other than that, he had a relatively normal outing. In 2016-17, he posted 11.3 points (57.1 percent shooting) and 7.7 rebounds per contest.”

Also, here the bloke is helping Kristaps Porzingis up after he'd taken a heavy tumble under the hoop. While the game continued and everything. What a nice chap.

at UTAH JAZZ (L 96-87):

The Utah Jazz were always gonna offer a greater challenge, what with being arguably the best defensive team in the NBA and all that. Ricky Rubio has come in to join Rudy Gobert and the lads who should still be challenging for those playoffs even without Gordon Hayward. Especially if that Aussie joker Joe Ingles keeps hitting threes at the rate he is.

There are lots of different ways to bring it on defence. Steven Adams, for example. He’s not a shot blocker and rebounder like Gobert is but try hitting your shot as he closes you down with a hand in your face. The way the Jazz showed it off against OKC was by playing that inside-out stuff. They were perfectly cool with the Thunder shooting mid-rangers so long as they couldn’t get to the rim and for a couple of minutes that looked rough as Westbrook and Anthony hit jumpers… until they dried up and the shots began missing.

Cue Adams going up to bring in an offensive board and flip it back in for his first points but Ingles responded with a second corner three to tie it up at 8-8. So Steve went up for another flipper at around the free throw line, on the feed from Russ. That put him at 7/7 from the field to begin the new season. His first foul came soon after, a somewhat contentious loose ball call. Then Gobert followed up a Joe Johnson missed to give Utah the lead and it was the final lead-change of the game, believe it or not. Following which Kiwi Steve missed his first field goal of 2017-18, a one-hander that went well short.

The Thunder missed all six of their triples in the first quarter and didn’t make a field goal in the last 5:51 of the frame. What’s crazy about that is that they were missing layups too. Then again, that’s Gobert territory. Of course they were missing layups. Utah weren’t exactly lighting it up either offensively but their ability to get the ball to the open man did them enough to forge that lead. The rest of the game kinda followed that pattern.

OKC were at least able to put a bit of a run together at the end of the first half, closing things to 44-34. The Big Three had already taken 31 shots with only 10 of them going good while the team as a whole were still only 2 of 14 from deep (recall the three point barrage against NYK). This is a team with three dudes who could genuinely expect to score 20+ a night and they only score 34 in the entire first half. The OK3 will take some adapting to each other but it was also insane just how tough they were guarded here, particularly inside where you’d often see three defenders all collapsing. Safe to say that meant limited opportunities for Kiwi Steve as well.

The frustration even bled into the easy stuff. Russ missed back to back free throws early in the third, an ignoble feat usually reserved for Adams or Roberson (who incredibly airballed two in a row in the third game). Speaking of frustration, this here led to a technical against Steve but since it was Aussie Joe that he bumped off it was 100% worth it. Argh, don't you just wanna punch him...

A couple Paul George threes got it as close as four points but late in the 3Q that lead was up to a game-high 20 points. Adams returned to a 12-point deficit mid-way through the fourth and promptly supplied a one-handed dunk. It ended 96-87. George was able to get to 22 points in the end and Melo had 26. Westbrook though, he only scored 6 – to go with the usual 13 rebounds and 9 assists. Meanwhile five Jazz players had double figures with Ingles leading the way with 19. Gobert had 16p/13r. Rubio had 16p/6r/5a. This was a bad one and Adams was not excused.

ESPN/Royce Young: “The Jazz presented the Thunder with a perfect quiz on where they stand. They protect the paint, get back in transition, execute in the half court and gobble up isolation-heavy offenses. The Thunder want to find a better brand of basketball, one that features a three-pronged attack all gelling in rhythm. The Jazz make it hard to do that and showed the Thunder it won't be as easy as they made it look against the Knicks two nights ago.”

at MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES (L 115-113):

Billy Donovan rightly chose to focus on the things that his team could control in what he said to the media after the Jazz defeat, which meant making shots and defending better. They didn’t have a lot of time to work on all that before they were back home and hosting the Timberwolves the very next night.

It was a game that pitted Adams against Karl-Anthony Towns, which is always a fun battle. Towns is still a bit raw as a defender but offensively he’s already one of the best in his position, capable of scoring both in and out of the paint. It also meant Taj Gibson returning to Oklahoma after playing half a year last season – he was cheered when he got announced. Gibbo was far from the biggest signing the Wolves made either, buddy. Try Jeff Teague and Jimmy Butler instead. Especially Jimmy Butler. So we had two teams who’ve made significant additions in the offseason each looking to figure things out in the early stages of the campaign. Away we go.

First thing that went right: Adams won the tip-off. He’s usually amazing at that but he’d lost both so far so whaddayaknow. Next thing that went right was Adams mopping up a Westbrook miss and putting it back in on the reverse. In fact Stevie was busy early on. Add in a block on Wiggins, a cherry-picking layup on the fast-break that Towns goaltended, a put-back from his own miss after a nice pass from Paul George and the usual extra hustle plays.

George has clearly looked to feed the ball into Adams a few times already this season – leading to more turnovers than buckets but they’re still figuring that combo out, obviously. Adams repaid the favour soon after for his first assist… and then back the other way for the one-handed dunk off the pick and roll. Adams had 8 of the Thunder’s first 14 points.

However with the Wolves making shots they were able to slowly stretch the lead out over the quarter. A late Melo flurry narrowed things up to 28-23 at the 1Q break, then Ray Felton helped bring it back to within two as Westbrook, Adams and George re-entered. Hey and then this happened:

Hell, by the end of the half Adams had 14 points and 7 rebounds, leading all scorers for the game. Bro was absolutely lights out, shooting 7/8 from the field too. No fouls either, incredibly, since this was a physical contest. Shout out to the refs. It wasn’t enough for the lead thanks to that 56% Wolves shooting and Thunder trailed 61-54 at the half.

They were still trailing after three, partially in part to a much less dominant quarter from Kiwi Steve. However the Wolves last season had a bit of a reputation for leaking late leads. 22 games they lost after being in front at some stage of the fourth. Naturally a fast-closing team like the Thunder are gonna back themselves there and with Melo again getting busy they pulled within three at 90-87… then Adams saw Towns bury a triple over his closeout.

Meaning we got one heck of a finish here. There was Westbrook with some badass moves at the rim, a bit of Towns and Butler doing there thing… best was the and-one for Kiwi Steve, making the free throw as well of course. Then with seconds left Carmelo Anthony whipped one up for three to give the Thunder the lead. Less than five ticks remaining and no timeouts, Minny had to gun it. Towns dropped a screen for Wiggins and, well… bingo.

Adams had 17 points and 13 rebound in a huge night for him but with the OK3 trying to take over in the second half he didn’t have as much of an impact later on. Westbrook would end with 31 points & 10 assists, looking himself again in the fourth quarter after his stinker vs Utah. Melo had 23 as well while Towns and Wiggins both scored 27. Crazy end though, right?

Daily Thunder: “It’s not a sexy topic to discuss, because very little of Steven Adams’ game is sexy, but again — Adams was very effective for the Thunder tonight. He finished with 17 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks, and played physical defense all night. He shot 8/12, grabbed 8 offensive rebounds, and just looks like a guy that is revitalized in the new Thunder landscape.

Thunderous Intentions Player Grades: "After a disappearing act against Utah, the big Kiwi reappeared and was active all night long. He battled furiously down low with Karl Anthony-Towns and completely dominated inside. Steven Adams showcased his athletic abilities and passing ability with some fantastic finishes at the rim and a court-long bullet pass to Russ on the break. Adams physicality down low is beautiful to watch and as long as he continues to bully players on the block, he will be a beast this season. // A+"

As a lot of his looks are coming off offensive rebounds, it would be nice to see him involved more from an offensive flow standpoint. He’s averaging 10.5 points on 73 percent shooting early in this Thunder season, and is playing about as hard as one can possibly play. Another solid effort tonight.”

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