Kiwi Steve in the NBA #4: Inconsistencies
BOX SCORES
vs HOU (W 105-103):
33 MINS | 6 PTS (3/7 FG) | 6 REB | 1 AST | 3 BLK | 2 TO | 1 PF
vs BKN (W 124-105):
32 MINS | 15 PTS (4/6 FG, 7/8 FT) | 6 REB | 2 BLK | 3 TO | 1 PF
vs IND (L 115-111/OT):
34 MINS | 8 PTS (3/7 FG, 2/2 FT) | 8 REB | 1 STL | 4 TO | 5 PF
NEXT WEEK
at Los Angeles Lakers, Wednesday 4.30pm NZT
at Sacramento Kings, Thursday 4.30pm NZT
at Denver Nuggets, Saturday 3.00pm NZT
vs Detroit Pistons, Tuesday 2.00pm NZT
vs HOUSTON ROCKETS
Four games lost in a row, the Thunder came into this home clash with the Houston Rockets needing a large, bold W to file away. Russell Westbrook v James Harden, that’s always worth a watch. Harden was the first of the 2012 Finals stars to disappear, although that long-criticised trade was also how OKC also picked up the draft selection that became Steven Adams and by extension led to this thing you’re reading right now. Everyone wins, sort of.
Westbrook’s been doing crazy things putting up huge numbers so far but James Harden is doing even more. Playing more as a point guard this season, he’s not getting the triple doubles that Russ does as he’s not the best rebounder, however the points and assist numbers are through the fecking room. Russ is averaging over 10 dimes a game, good for second in the NBA by a full mark. Harden is way clear of that with 12.5 assists. Russ edges Jim by a three points as a scorer though.
And the game was worth the hype too (unlike when they played the Dubs…). OKC scored 38 points in the first quarter, Steven Adams scoring six quick points as they stretched to a 19-6 lead. Naturally the Rockets did a fair bit of hauling that in, they’re a team that has huge scoring potential yet defending is hardly their strong suit. Weird thing is, James Harden wasn’t scoring. Andre Roberson jumped on him and just hassled him all day long. Harden would finish with only 4/16 shooting, although he still made them assists count as he has all campaign. Harden made one field goal in the first half, compared to the Thunder who shot 61%.
But yeah, they were only up 65-63 at the break and the third belonged to the Rockets. They started it on a 14-5 run and got as many as 11 points up. Ah but come the fourth and the Thunder were back. The Rockets would only score 13 points in the Q. In fact after Clint Capela made it 100-94 with 6:26 to play, they wouldn’t add another hoop until the final play of the game. No kidding, Eric Gordon drilled a three on the buzzer and they were already down five by then. Oladipo made a three to tie the game at 100-all with 3:00 left. Andre Roberson, who had an awful offensive night (but brilliant defensive one) finished one after for the lead.
Then Stevie followed with a big defensive play, blocking Eric Gordon under the hoop as he looked to capitalise on a second chance possession. That’s the one, son.
Then an important rebound with 41 seconds left and from there on it was a mess of misses and turnovers and video reviews of those turnovers until Westbrook slammed one down on the cut and that was that, baby.
Holy crap, what a dunk though. Capela is 6’10 and a long defender. That’s scary stuff.
Oh by the way mate, amphibious means able to live on land or in water. Ambidextrous is probably the word you were looking for, but whatever, not that many people seemed to notice. Silly Americans.
Seven Houston players scored 10+ yet the highest of them was Ryan Anderson’s 14 points. Harden had 13p/13a. On the other side it was Westbrook leading the way with 30 points and 9 assists. Oladipo scored 29. Adams didn’t score a point outside the first quarter, which was another sign that he’s not been at the level hoped of him after the last playoffs and also his preseason efforts. Not to mention that big contract which makes it impossible to slide under the radar any longer. The hand injury doesn’t help.
NewsOK: “With Eric Gordon driving, Adams reached over with his bandaged right hand for a key block with 1:16 left. On Houston's next possession, Gordon pump-faked Westbrook into the front row but missed. Adams was there for the defensive rebound. It was needed on a night Adams wasn't himself offensively. He received a perfectly lofted pass from Westbrook in the first half only to miss from less than a foot out.”
As for that hand injury, Stevie’s not making any excuses.
Kiwi Steve: “I’ve played enough games with the wrap to be used to it. Either way it’s just that I sucked pretty much. That’s what the bottom line was, guys.”
Daily Thunder: “Steven Adams downplayed the wrap on his hand bothering him, but it’s pretty obvious it is. He missed a bunny layup, and then a bunny alley-oop. Said Adams, “Either way it’s just that I sucked pretty much.” He started by saying the wrap had nothing to do with it, then worked around to saying he can’t let the wrap bother him. Bottom line: I think the wrap is bothering him.
Billy Donovan did note Adams defense being great, and I concur. Especially in the second half. As great as Roberson was on Harden, Adams enabled a lot of that because he was so good showing and recovering on Capela. It allowed the Thunder to not switch, and keep Roberson on Harden basically the entire game.”
vs BROOKLYN NETS
Ah yes, the Kiwi NBA derby, some might say. Sean Marks’ Nets against Steven Adams’ Thunder, though it’s not like Marks was out on the court saying g’day. Or at least the telly cameras never picked it up if he did. Either way, there was work to be done for each so it’s fairly irrelevant.
The Thunder were looking to put away a team they ought to beat while the Nets… they don’t really care about results as much. This season they’re equally about constructing a style and culture with the young players that they’ve gotten their hands on, something to lead them into the future when one sunny day they’ll even be allowed to keep their own first round draft pick.
Strange thing, the Nets came out on an offensive tear as strong as they’ve done all season. They scored 40 points in the first quarter, shooting 8/10 from 3pt. Now, if you think that sounds out of character then realise that they also only made two further threes all game. OKC haven’t conceded that many points in an opening quarter since 2009. Brook Lopez had four of those triples. He and Steve-o had a right old tussle going on.
The Thunder soon sorted things out. Within a couple hoops of the second quarter starting, they were within three points again. Adams missed a free throw, stunningly (don’t worry, it was the only one he missed all night – 7/8 he was), before Oladipo banked a two-for and… well the thing is they were never very far behind. Brooklyn scored 40 but were only up 40-34 after 1Q. The Nets were able to find a bit of traction as they pushed the lead back up to eight a couple times but a Joffrey Lauvergne three pointer with 1:47 left in the half had the Thunder back in front and they never looked back.
Russell Westbrook had a triple double by the end of the third quarter, something he’s incredibly done 16 times in his career. A 14-4 run to close that third pushed the lead out to 14 points and the Nets never got within single figures in the last frame. Westbrook logged 30 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds because he’s relentlessly unstoppable. Only one three point attempt too, curiously. By the end, the Thunder had huge leads in shooting percentage and rebounds.
Brook Lopez had 22 points and 4 rebounds, though most of those points came in the first quarter (and from beyond the perimeter). After that Adams did a pretty top level job on the dude, himself with 15 points and 6 boards. Only one personal foul too despite getting involved in a couple bits of niggle. Like the one with Trevor Booker.
Daily Thunder: “Steven Adams played great tonight. He put up 15 points and 6 rebounds. He also made Trevor Booker mad, late in the fourth. Booker shoved Adams and both guys picked up a technical.”
Russ: “He probably didn't feel it. Probably knowing Steven, that stuff doesn't bother him. Obviously, he's a big dude and a very strong guy. A push don't do nothing for him. He went up there and knocked down a free throw.”
Thunderous Intentions: “The Brook Lopez-led attack resulted in 40 first quarter points for the Nets tonight. Lopez hit 4 of his five three-point attempts in the first quarter, stretching Steven Adams out like a rubber band. The problem isn’t that Adams can’t defend the three-point line. The problem is that it pulls Adams away from the rim. With Adams away from the paint Brooklyn was able to capitalize attacking the rim. This forced OKC wing defenders to help on drives. The Nets 8-10 shooting from 3-point range in the first quarter was no fluke because almost every shot was wide-open.”
Vic Oladipo also scored 26 as six Thunder players hit double figures. It was OKC’s highest scoring game of the season so far, though the Nets aren’t exactly renowned for their defence. Hey, they’re getting better.
More Daily Thunder: “The Nets aren’t a disaster again this season! With new head coach Kenny Atkinson and new general manager Sean Marks, the Nets are starting to make sense with their rebuild. Their pick this year is going to the Celtics and they won’t be in contention anytime soon, but Brook Lopez and Jeremy Lin are leading this team in the right direction.”
vs INDIANA PACERS
The good news was that there was no Paul George for the Pacers, the perennial All Star missing his second game with an ankle injury. There was also no Semaj Christon for the Thunder but that hardly evens it out. Usually the Thunder take a big first quarter lead and then blow it from there. This time at least that wasn’t the case… they never led by more than two points in the 1Q and instead learned the lesson of how good Jeff Teague can be. That guy scored 7 of the Pacers’ first 9 points, eventually leading all scorers (excluding Westbrook, of course – he had 31) with 30 points. 9 assists as well.
OKC score the first 9 points of the second quarter, the bench guys doing the business here. Adams checked back in and even gave Oklahoma City the lead with a layup to make it 38-37, but don’t get too excited. This wasn’t a good one for Steve, his points and boards were also peppered with turnovers and fouls. 4 of the first and 5 of the latter.
Right, so the Pacers got as many as 15 points up. Russ kept at ‘em and he tied the game at 95-all to cap an 8-0 run late in this one, with Oladipo sinking a three soon after to ensure they stayed with it. Myles Turner and Jeff Teague each made their free throws to keep it an Indiana lead but they left Russ with four seconds and a three-point deficit to work with and this is what Russ does in those situations:
And so we went to overtime… where Teague added another 8 points and the Pacers won it. Ah, stink. Thad Young also scored 20 for IND, while Oladipo had 14 for OKC and Enes Kanter scored 16 off the bench. Russ had 31 points, 15 assists and 11 rebounds, though he shot 13/34 from the field. Adams was once more off his expected pace.
Thunderous Intentions Player Grades: STEVEN ADAMS – D
“What is going on with Steven Adams? For the first time in his career Adams seems almost intimidated on the basketball court. Maybe he feels the pressure of living up to that $100 million contract. Or maybe his hand truly is an issue. Either way, the Thunder have to figure out a solution. The beginning of the season was characterized by a dominant Russell Westbrook/Steven Adams pick & roll but that hasn’t worked in 8 games. Adams doesn’t look explosive at all on the court, and it shows in his stats. The Big Kiwi finished the night with 8 points and 8 rebounds…average numbers. He also had a steal…good for a big man. And 0 blocks, 5 personal fouls, 4 turnovers and 0 assists…terrible. The 23-year old was shying away from contact on the offensive AND defensive glass; his inactivity was a large part of the Pacers 51 total rebounds. If Myles Tuner didn’t go to the free throw line 12 times we could say Adams did a fantastic job in that respect. The Pacers second-year center scored 15 points on 2-8 shooting, but he was able to coerce Adams into fouls early and often.”
“In Sunday's 115-111 overtime loss to Indiana, he showed glimpses of getting back. In the first quarter, Adams went for a reverse layup and was stripped, but recovered the ball and dunked hard with his bandaged right hand.
In the second quarter, he caught a bounce pass from Russell Westbrook on the fast break and finished in stride with a right-handed finger roll for the go-ahead points at 38-37, then added a two-handed dunk. He had just one dunk in his previous three games before Sunday.
But through three quarters, Adams had almost as many fouls (three) as rebounds (five). The Pacers were the aggressors, leading the rebound battle 35-31, including a two-handed putback dunk by Glenn Robinson III in the third quarter. Filling in for All-Star Paul George, Robinson cut in front of Adams from the baseline without a Thunder player putting a body on him.”
Russell Westbrook: "I wouldn't say it's anything [Steven’s] doing. I give him a lot of credit because he's doing a lot of things on the floor you may not see. He does a lot of great things on the floor helping us out, communication, being a big presence throughout the game. He's been doing a great job all season long."
For the record, Adams shot 53.4% from 8.3 shots per game before the hand injury, scoring 10.3 points with 8.0 rebounds. Since then those numbers read 47.8% shooting from 6.6 attempts per game, scoring 9.4 points with 8.3 rebounds. A definite drop in field goal attempts and shooting percentage, which is reflected in the points total too, though in a small sample size of seven games on each side for a guy who has varied in scoring from night to night to the point where he’s only once had consecutive double figure points games, those figures are easily twisted. Perhaps the most important stat though? The Thunder were 6-1 after the Miami game in which he hurt the hand. They’re 2-5 since.
Maybe there is something in all that?
ODDS & ENDS
Good old Zach Lowe, ESPN basketballing savant and Grantland Hall of Famer, wrote a piece about the Thunder this week and how they’re transitioning beyond Kevin Durant. There’s plenty on how Sam Presti has favoured athletic defenders (who unfortunately cannot shoot), constantly keeping the team young and vibrant and thus always in the mix for trade talks. There’s also some stuff on the early struggles Steven Adams has had at times, like how the lack of a shooting PF like Serge Ibaka has allowed opposition defences to stack the middle and it’s taken away the lob buckets that Russ & Steve were so good with last season. Although with Domantas Sabonis’ early three-point clip, that might only be a temporary issue. Lots of perspective in there.
On OKC after the KD Event, plus 10 Things I Like and Don't Like starring Vinsanity, Staps, the god Ian Eagle, more https://t.co/EjK257wvyk
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) November 17, 2016
Also lots of quotes from Steven Adams. Mostly about basketball but the intro sees him addressing his reputation as a pest and its effect upon the New Zealand tourism industry as pertains to NBA players. They don’t call him Kiwi Steve for nothing.
Ooh, and there are bonus feature excerpts…
DOUBLE STRIKE! A few from the team went to this community bowling thing and stuff happened, queue Mr Katz with the witty observations:
Fred Katz/Norman Transcript: “All Thunder players, except for the concussed Christon, went bowling with kids from military families in Edmond on Saturday afternoon. That can only mean one thing: More Steven Adams-Enes Kanter stories.
While players all around bowled with kids, the Stache Brothers set up shop at the farthest lane from the building's entrance. With maybe more kids huddled around them than any other duo, Adams bowled two balls, one with each hand, at the same time. Kanter came from behind him and bowled a third ball half a second later.
They knocked down only nine pins on the bowl, but you would never guess it from their reaction. The kids cheered, Adams looked at Kanter and belted, “Yeah!” and the two emphatically high-fived.”