[Lebron James] on Steven Adams: “When you play Houston, one of the main focuses is Steven Adams. You need the whole team, plus the bench, and the coaching staff, and your security team to box him out.”
You cant box him out. I think he is just a nice guy and lets the other team box him out so that everyone has a good time.
We should thank his parents for that. Imagine if he was one of those overly angry aggressive bigs. He legit would put dudes in the hospital
He could very well have been a pro rugby player as well, im sure he would have been a terror in the pack.
no doubt he could have, his paralympic-champion shotputting sister Lisa was actually the first woman to play with the New Zealand men’s national team at the Physical Disability Rugby League Commonwealth Championship
No shit? I didn’t know she made the NZMNT for the PDRLCC!
New Zealand Mutant Ninja Turtles??
Is Scottie Barnes part of that team
just to let you know: my wife is angry at you for making me laugh out in the middle of the night.
I feel like this was a dodgeball reference
ikr?
Theres a saying in rugby–taller the tree the harder it falls. With how rugby tackles use leverage and momentum, being tall isnt a huge advantage. Another responder posted a link to Jordan Mailata, but Jordan Mailata was not a high level rugby player. He also played rugby league which is more stop-start than rugby Union, which is more popular in NZ.
rugby league which is more stop-start than rugby Union
I think you’ve got that backwards.
Nah they’re right. The play the ball in league is a massive slow down compared to union.
Just going to clear this up. Jordan mailata was a human wrecking ball on the under 20s competition and was well on his way to the top grade where he would’ve been dominant, but decided to make the jump to the NFL instead.
Rugby league is also a lot more physically demanding and has way more active game time than rugby union.
I dont follow Australian u-20 Rugby League reserve team players that closely so I was basing it off of US reporting on Mailata, which says (per Wikipedia, citing the New York Times):
Mailata was only offered a reserve-grade contract due to fitness and conditioning concerns. The South Sydney coaching staff did not believe that Mailata would be able to physically keep up with the pace and nature of professional rugby league, due to the free-flowing play and limited stoppages in games. Mailata was given the advice from his agency to “play a sport that appreciates his size”.
I wouldn’t say well on the way as he was only offered $5k for a chance to play reserve grade at Souths.
He appeared to be better than the opportunities afforded to him I feel just because of his size. I reckon he would’ve been an NRL player had he stuck at it, but he definitely made the right choice in the end.
Yeah, was gonna say that being that big sounds great in theory for rugby, US football, etc., but tends to suck in practice because of how much those games rely on leverage. There’s a saying that the low man wins, and when you’re 7’0”, it’s really fuckin hard to prevent people from getting under you and winning with leverage, even if you’re way heaver and stronger than them.
Eh theres plenty of precedent for players of around his size. He wouldn’t stand out much next to a Skelton or an Etzebeth. Certainly bigger then your average lock but nothing crazy.
Yes and that’s just to make guys more hyped up to have to tackle giants.
The best locks are like 6’6 or taller, I don’t see a reason that couldn’t extend an extra few inches if the guy is still mobile and athletic.
He could be a monster in a scrum, a ruck, or on the line out.
Probably would look like this
i would love to see Steven Adams doing the haka dance
Dame Valeria Adams playing for the Black Ferns would have been absurd. She’ll just have to settle for being the GOAT women’s shot putter.
He said in an interview he sucked at rugby so he gave basketball a go instead.
He’s the smallest brother. Let that sink in.
I still remember when that shithead Pat Bev collapsed after going against Adams on a screen. Adams barely moved lmao.
Steven Adam’s with Draymond Greens .. ‚disposition‘
Imagine Steve Adams body Beef Stew mind. Just pure chaos.
Imagine if he got the temper and aggressiveness of Beef Stew lmao.
Draymond
This. He’s probably smiling and saying “okay, little fella, I am moving so you can catch the ball! Have fun!”
the whole league’s older brother
Some say to this day, Russell Westbrook is still getting his rebounds from Steven Adams
Nicest guy in the league
There’s no chin under his beard, only another fist.
No no, Steven is a nice guy, so its an open palm to shake hands with and dap up
Has anyone just tried to politely ask him to stop?
Lebron gives respect to pretty much all the players in the league, it’s refreshing instead of the constant negativity and hate..
It’s part of what’s enabled LeBron to be such a great floor raiser and teammate. He finds what teammates are good at, and put them in locations where they can succeed. He’s been able to do this with lots of mixed talent teammates
Except for when he gave Kevin Love depression
Kevin said he had a great time playing with Lebron tho
With all due respect to K Love, I think u/kiss_the_homies_gn probably understands Kevin’s mental health a little better than Kevin does
u/kiss_the_homies_gn watched inside out 1 AND 2, of course they know emotions better than anyone
he had to say that or lebron would give him super depression
You can still have a great time playing and get depression at the same time
Couldn’t fix Dlo
weve been blessed with such a great face of a league and we take it for granted.
our media on the other hand…
he even praised and defended westbrook during his lakers tenure while he felt the actual opposite (and this rubbed westbrook the wrong way as we found out a couple of months ago)
i do think this adams praise is authentic tho
Agreed. Love this take. Funny and respect given to different strengths on the court.
Except Kings legend Russell Westbrook.
And Kevin Love.
Nicee to see Adams getting hys flowers
one of those guys that every single fan says, man i sure would love him on our squad
Good defender, one of the best rebounders if not the best, probably the best screen setter in the league, and understands his role perfectly
Hed be an instant improvement to any nba roster in history, just adds winning plays
and like a top dude. no one ever says anything bad about him. he is loved.
That screen on Beverly will live rent free in my head for the rest of my life
not only was it a crushing screen, Steven wasn’t moving at all. all of the momentum came from Pat Bev who ran 80% speed into the brick wall we call Steven Adams
It was so good that even Patrick Beverly approved despite getting demolished.
It was a thing of beauty.
I watch it weekly, it’s a favorite of mine!
Skinny Harden, Mike D’Antoni, JJ Watt, wow this clip has it all lmao
Also a great example of a guy actually being developed and given time.
In a perfect world he never leaves OKC.
He’s also the only active player I’ve ever gotten to meet.
I ran into him and Collison at Big Truck Tacos once. Both were really nice dude.
I was mad at the guy next to me for taking so long to decide which piece of pizza to get at the Whole Foods deli.
They only had two options. And this guy stared at them like he was making a life or death decision.
Then my wife poked me and asked “is that the Thunder guy?” And I realized I was next to a giant man who needed his nutrients. Really nice dude. I didn’t bother him or say anything and then boom everyone noticed as he was trying to check out and leave and he got swarmed by people asking for pics. Felt kinda sad. But he was total class.
His screens are something else. And also most of them legal as well. He is just a brick wall
He was so good in last playoffs. Changed the whole flow of the game when he was on the court
Not the best defender though
I see the wildest trade suggestions for him. People think he’s just a nice role player, I don’t think they realize just how valuable he is for Houston’s style of play.
When Adams is on the court, he produces roughly one extra possession for us for every four shots we miss. We miss a lot of shots. This is before even considering any other actual perks like setting amazing screens, being a good passer in the short roll and being able to just bully some matchups for easy points in the paint by himself.
I really feel like he has to be the most valuable backup big in the entire league by a wide margin. I know Valanciunas has been great for Denver but imo that comes more from being able to give Jokic rest without the game completely collapsing and less from his own unique skillset (although he is good!). I.e. they could replace him with another good big without much real change whereas Adams fills a very specific, very critical niche for us. Next closest guy I can think of that could even begin to replicate his impact for us would be like Mitchell Robinson maybe
Everyone points to a lot of reasons Memphis fell apart, but losing Adams was the biggest. That offense was very similar to the Houstons, it was fast and aggressive but it missed a lot of shots. Adams giving them so many second point opportunities played into Morants playstyle perfectly. Edey is a beast, but he isn’t Adams on the offensive boards.
Adams and Dillon at the same time helped build a culture here and killed Memphis
Do people say the same thing about Andre? As good of a rebounder as Steven is Andre is like one of the best rebounders of all time.
He and Adams are good mates
Feels like one of those guys that’s always worth more to the team he’s on than the other team would reasonably be willing to give up to get him.
His surgery from a couple years ago was paradoxically a huge blessing for us, since we were able to take a chance on him for incredibly cheap cause it was unsure how he’d look after that
Been an absolute home run for us even without being able to play him on b2bs. Plus everyone absolutely loves him, both the team and the fans
All fans love him. He is one I wish we could get back just to have him back in the city.
Nicee to see popel not use auteocorret
I would kill to see Steve Adams in his prime with a healthy (Haliburton) Pacers.
The legend of Steven Adams’ strength continues to grow.
there’s some idiots on our sub who get pissy after games like sunday where one of the biggest reasons we lost was having to play Clint Capela starter minutes in 2025, with Sengun being ill and Adams sitting out on the second game of b2bs as usual. basically complaining that if we have a 3 day break between games anyway, he should be playing in the b2b and it won’t kill him
I think these people severely underestimate how important he is to our team success and how critical it is that he’s as healthy as possible come playoff time. If that means dropping 3-4 regular season games that playing him might have swung, so be it - cover the dude in bubble wrap if you have to. Glad our FO is keeping the big picture in mind when it comes to this guy
Idiots??!!? On a team subreddit?!?
I’m as shocked as you are!
The lakers sub would never have overreactions like that
It’s time to talk about 6th man Reaves / Reaves trades again. One bad game and a Rich Paul interview was all it took.
Reaves is a bum obviously
I specifically love the Laker trade ideas: Giannis for Reaves and Rui, who says no?
Overpay tbh, second and Vando plus knecht is more fair
You guys should visit the Utah Jazz sub
we have especially idiotic idiots I’m ngl
I think we have a bunch of KD bandwagon fans this season trying to trade our young core because “WE’RE IN WIN NOW MODE”
people were trying to trade Reed Sheppard for Dennis Schroeder because “we need a PG, we’re in win now mode!!!”
No we’ve always had idiots lol ClutchFans is like over two decades old
oh fo sho
that Texas HS education showing it’s value
Bunch of Einstein’s compared to the Kings subreddit, I assure you.
THe recent nuke from Mo Salah has shown me how incredibly moronic our own fanbase is.
I stopped going on the Blazers subreddit years ago. Maybe it’s improved, but I highly doubt it.
We have our equivalent in mitchell Robinson, its just important to have them playing during key moments in the big games, no need to risk injury in regular season for a few more wins unless you have to
Unironically the rockets most important player. He doesn’t play much but when he’s on the court it feels oppressive. Love Steven Adams
Hope he gets a ring someday, dude is just that cool
Listen, I hear what you’re saying, but I’d probably crash out too if I had to watch Clint Capela miss 3 foot bunnies all night
He’s one of those guys where if you look at his box scores your like meh he’s not that good but then you realize he gets 4-5 offensive boards a game and clears out players on the defensive side so other can come and scoop up board and don’t even talk about the screen setting which is frees up the offense…
He’s a player where his +/- is definitely significant.
I remember watching a compilation from Zion’s 2021 season a while back and it was insane to me how much space Adams was creating for him without being an actual floor spacer just by setting screens and sealing off multiple defenders in the paint. Hell even the Grizzlies and Ja started to fall off pretty massively once he was gone as well.
Why is this post about Steven Adams/Houston but this video is the Magic v Heat
This sub is broken on the app for me. Same video for most posts here
Oh shit. Look at that, me too. Thanks
It’s fcked on mobile, for me its the Kellerman-Rich Paul pod for every clip.
Mine is the tatum training video
That might be better than my clip. Some lucky fan out there is stuck with an actual highlight
A lot of people have been stuck with the Grayson Allen’s traveling circus clip lmao
Lmao rip
Shows the right game for me
Right for me
nba fan discovers bugs for the first time
GameCube
Nintendo
5% TINT
So you can’t see up in my window
There’s this great video about Steven Adams’ gravity. The same way teams will leave the ball to guard Steph, teams will lose positioning to box out Steven Adams. Gravity despite not scoring a ton or even looking for his own shot, such a unique player in that sense.
Thanks for sharing - I’m unfortunately one of those NBA fans now as I get older where I can only watch clips and look at box scores as my nights are more and more busy and I can’t set aside a few hours to watch a game now so recaps like these really help.
Definitely appreciate the “rebounding gravity” as that’s been a huge aspect of Houston capitalizing on those second-chance points, and even if it’s not him getting the offensive rebound, there’s Sengun who can do it too if Adams does get boxed out.
No idea why Memphis traded this guy for a bunch of seconds. Appreciate it though
We gave Steve enough time to rest and continue to do so, we fixed him and got his career back.
I hope we are doing the same with DFS
Wizards did the same with Marcus Smart but we got a first (became Will Riley) out of that deal. Grizzlies medical staff might just suck.
I kinda get it considering it was up in the air how he would look as a big man coming back from season-ending knee surgery, but man is it highway robbery with the benefit of hindsight
Fuck all star weekend. Instead let’s have the league compete in Olympic style events. I wanna see how strong Steven Adams really is. I wanna see whose got the fastest 100 yard dash. I wanna see who has the fastest mile time. I wanna see who can throw the shot put furthest. That all sounds infinitely more entertaining than whatever all star weekend is . Shit, call it all of with a flag football game. I would watch every minute of that shit every year.
if John Wall was still in the league he’d win that 100m event. Fast!
Idk, my money would have been on Fox.
Ausar/Amen
NFL used to do the NFLs fastest man competition - you can see Hershel Walker compete in this one here in the 80s, genuinely so great to watch these guys are fucking units - https://youtu.be/tp6Z6bh5Hl4?si=VxLu_dTk48jelYJL
A center strongman competition would be epic.
I don’t even think a center would win it. I remember in like 2014 or 2015. It was reported that Steph could deadlift more than anyone else on the team. I think shorter dudes would have a good chance.
If he wins a ring should he make the HOF just off his rebounding ability because stevo is the best offensive rebounder in nba history
He’s tremendous, for sure, but best in NBA history? Moses Malone, Rodman, Barkley….
Maybe the best of his current generation, but nowhere close to best all-time.
Right now adams is on pace to have the highest offensive rebound % in NBA history and it isn’t close
Percentage-wise, yeah he’s having a great couple of seasons in that regard but he also plays limited minutes, which skews the statistics. It’s really an apples to oranges comparison. If I played in one NBA game for 30 seconds and I caught a rebound and then checked out, I’d retire with a 100% OBR percentage. Nobody would call me the greatest rebounder ever.
“On pace” is doing a lot of heavy lifting when we’re talking about greatest of all time, which is something you have to look at over the span of an entire career. Adams is a big dude who’s likely facing a physical decline in the coming years. Even if he stays on the pace he’s at now for the next 5 years, he won’t come close to the total number of offensive rebounds as the top 10 OBRers ever.
We’re also comparing different eras. The NBA Steven Adams plays in is very different from the one Dennis Rodman played in, and the physicality under the basket is a world different.
6 teams from the last decade are in the top 25 all time…
5 of them are Steven Adams teams with 3 different franchises (HOU ‘25-26 & ‘24-25, MEM ‘21-22, OKC ‘15-16 & ‘16-17)
I never said he wasn’t great.
What other player has impacted 3 different franchises in that category to this level? Maybe Rodman with San Antonio, det , & chicago or barkley with phili , phx , & hou . But to act like it’s crazy to categorize adams as one of if not the best offensive rebounders in NBA history is crazy when the #s show he is , is crazy to me.
The original comment said best of all time, which is what they disagreed with.
I’d definitely categorize him as one of (if not the greatest) of the modern era, but again, we’re still comparing vastly different eras.
And the only numbers that really support your argument is the percentage argument, and that is skewed by other factors. We’re also comparing individual stats. No doubt Adams was the key contributing factor to those teams but you can’t give him all the credit for the overall team improvement. Plus, offensive rebounding has gone up significantly across all teams over the last 10-20 years as the game has changed.
Adams is incredible, but put him in the 90s against Rodman to see who the better rebounder is, and I’m picking Rodman every time.
First of all, your statement is incorrect. He doesn’t even have the highest offensive rebound % this season, let alone in NBA history lol. Mitchell Robinson is at 28.1% and Adams is at 25.4%
Second, this is exactly why you can’t box score watch while ignoring all context. For the entire history of the NBA up until about 6-8 years ago, teams almost exclusively ran 2-big lineups. With the emergence of smallball, nearly every team is now running a wing at the 4 rather than a second big. In addition, switching defenses were not the norm until very recently. When Adams screens for a PG and the defense decides to switch, that means you’ve got a 6-3 200lb point guard trying to box out 6-11 280lb Steven Adams. The gist is that smaller players on the court equals easier offensive rebounding opportunities. This is why Adams’ ORB% was consistently around 14% earlier in his career and has now skyrocketed to 25% at age 32 (an age at which rebounding generally would be more likely to decrease than increase).
I love Steven Adams, but that is just whole heartedly disrespectful to Dennis rodman who is without a doubt the GOAT offensive rebounder. 7 seasons with more ORB per game than steven adams best, in an era with way fewer possessions per game.
Fyi Adams is on pace to crush rodmans offensive rebound % this season. The rockets as a whole are on pace to be the best offensive rebounding team ever by a significant margin.
Comparing 371 minutes played over 17 games to 17159 across 7 seasons of rodmans peak (92-98) is simply not comparable.
It’s based on 1 season…highest rodman ever got was 20 , Steven is at 25 which is why i said he’s on PACE to break the record…
Using a rate statistic over 371 minutes played is just a silly thing to do because of how statistical variance works, especially when itd be a massive outlier for that player.
Rodman lead the league in ORB% 7 times, and was top 3 10 straight seasons with similar production. Adams has done it…once, and his current rate is 40% higher than his previous best in a qualifying season.
Itd be like saying duncan robinson was on pace to being the greatest 3 point shooter of all time because he was the “fastest to X 3s” for a bunch of milestones.
Dudes a beast having a great season, but tough to project much when he just doesnt play very much.
By what stat? By total ORB and ORB% theyre almost all teams from the 80s. ORB/100 possessions has no recent teams on it, although it does have a couple of those rodman bulls teams.
Giving the credit to the guy playing the 9th most minutes at 13.7 minutes and <3 ORB a game on last years houston squad is certainly a take.
Dudes a great offensive rebounder, especially in the modern NBA, but we cant get carried away.
Is the higher 3 balls make it harder or easier to get rebound.
Lots of factors. More 3s means more long rebounds (aka wider spread of rebounds). Higher FG% means fewer ORB chances. More possessions means more chances. Fewer teams crash the offensive glass as hard because fast breaks are so dangerous defensively. Players also generally play fewer minutes.
really depends if youre talking total boards, ORB%, or per possession statistics.
It’s harder to gage between Rodman and Adams since two different games, but it seems Adams are better statically.
by what metric? By pretty much all metrics rodman is clearly better, and on like a staggeringly higher sample size of minutes/games/possessions.
Like you said, players are more efficient score wise, more than 3 points, less playing time.
in terms of ORB% though hes also not higher on any significant sample size.
Mitch is on a historic pace for offensive rebounding so he’s got competition.
This isn’t stevo’s first time. He’s been on multiple teams who have been at the top of offensive rebounding in NBA history
Steven Adams is my dad
Just do what Draymond does against Steven Adams /s
It’s incredible, every team he’s been on has led the league in team offensive rebounding, even if he hasn’t as an individual. That means he’s also creating offensive rebounds for his teammates which isn’t even a stat that we track.
he’s right
fell in love with the man when i saw his giant protruding brow as a rookie on OKC lmfao, glad he’s getting his flowers
Is anyone else’s Reddit app glitched so that all video clips are of the cute little Raptors fan?
Mine is all Grayson Allen’s travel video. I thought I was going crazy
Shout out Steven Adams for several reasons, but it’s incredible how he seemed to be washed/succumbing to injuries 2 years ago and has somehow bounced back into not just being good, but kind of dominant in his role.
Even though as a Spurs fan I’m supposed to be a blind Houston hater, I think it’s so cool that Adams is part of an awesome double center lineup that kills people on the offensive boards.
I remember the 2016 nba semi between Spurs and OKC. The thunder with Steven Adams and Enes kanter whooped the Spurs on the boards 70 to 47 offensive rebounds. This was the beautiful game spurs and old Timmy, Boris and Boban could do nothing.
Enes was an absolute menace Offensive Rebounder
Yesterday it was the Grayson Allen travel. I guess today all the videos I see are going to be replaced by Desmond Bane clapping after beating the heat.
Do teams properly value offensive rebounding in the draft?
Mitchell Robinson and Josh Hart alone outrebounding entire teams on offense was a big reason why we had such a high rated offense under Thibs
KHAAAAAAL DROGOOOOOOOOOO
I think he was gonna say the strongest player he’s ever played against but didn’t want to say it
LeBron has felt Adam’s strength… which comes up through his legs into his core..and with a new knee now he is bringing all that strength..Bball IQ..experience together to shift the paradigm…
Is Lbj in his home theater?
Love the football jerseys in the background
Steve Nash’s tonality and voice is seriously bad. I want to turn it off anytime I hear him. Lose respect instantly
I’m so glad to call him a fellow Australian
Kia Ora bro