Will Oklahoma City Thunder’s Steven Adams become a starter?
Will Steven Adams claim a starting job in Oklahoma City?
Oklahoma City Thunder center Steven Adams showed a lot of positive signs in fairly limited minutes last season. He showed his ability to block shots and rebound at a high level. They were on display during the postseason as well, which has led many to speculate about when Steven Adams will become the Thunder’s full-time starting center.
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Joel Brigham believes Adams will claim a starting job fairly soon.
"At some point there’s just no way to justify starting Kendrick Perkins over Steven Adams, who proved in his rookie season last year that he’s not only the clearly superior offensive player (then again, literally everybody in the NBA is a superior offensive player to Perkins), but also the superior rebounder. Adams also is about a million times more athletic and a great fit in the OKC starting lineup. All he needs is the minutes to prove he can do it full-time. Assuming that happens early in the season, he should be one of the more exciting young players in the Western Conference by the end of the year."
Steven Adams will certainly have some competition to win the job. As Brigham points out, the incumbent, Kendrick Perkins, remains. Plus the team spent another first round pick on a big man – former Michigan Wolverines’ center Mitch McGary. However, Steven Adams’ ability to protect the rim and rebound should give him the gig sooner rather than later.
Steven Adams averaged 3.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 0.7 blocks in just 14.8 minutes per game while shooting 50.3% from the floor and 58.1% from the free throw line
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