Thunder’s Steven Adams shows off maturation in playoffs
After recording only six double-doubles in 80 regular-season games, Adams notched six in his first 12 playoff games.
“He's starting to see a lot of the things that he's capable of doing, and the best part of his game is that he plays with great energy and enthusiasm,” coach Billy Donovan said.
Because of his talent level, when you do that, you put yourself in good position to be pretty successful.
Wednesday night’s Game 2 drubbing by the Warriors in the Western Conference finals offered yet another case study in Adams’ grittiness.
Midway through the first quarter, he walked gingerly to the bench after Golden State’s Festus Ezeli went up for a rebound and landed on Adams’ back.
Adams’ tenacious ways became a national story line when, as an Oklahoma City rookie in the 2014 playoffs, he tangled up with Memphis’ Zach Randolph.
Running back down the floor, Randolph punched Adams in the neck and was suspended for Game 7 of the first round.
In January, a poll conducted by the Los Angeles Times revealed that NBA coaches and players consider Adams the league’s second dirtiest player.
In Monday’s Game 1, Adams showed casual NBA fans that he is more than an old-timey mustache and almost annoying aggression.
The next afternoon, after practice at USF, Adams was asked why he had worn a bandage wrap around his bruised right hand.