Film Room: Steven Adams is the Thunder’s “reverse” floor spacer
By Gideon Lim
In today’s pace-and-space era, wing shooters and stretch 5s are widely-recognized for their ability to create space for others. But, game film from tonight’s matchup against the Indiana Pacers showed a hidden truth – Steven Adams is emerging as a new kind of floor spacer for the OKC Thunder.
Earlier this year, Billy Donovan explained how Steven Adams benefits from the floor spacing his teammates offers. However, Adams is no free rider. If anything, after tonight’s game Adams showed he should be recognized as a “reverse” floor spacer.
Most NBA offenses today lace three-point shooters around the arc in order to make dribble penetration easier. Teams then get to take “better” shots – shots either in the paint or from distance.
On the OKC Thunder, Paul George, Carmelo Anthony and Alex Abrines spring to mind when it comes to floor spacing. Indeed, Billy Donovan is spot-on in pointing out that as a roll man, Steven Adams has found it easier getting to the rim this season. Compare Adams’ play over the last two seasons. His effective field goal percentage has jumped from 57.1% last year to an impressive 64.6%, top 5 in the league.
Coming into the season, many expected Steven Adams to reap the rewards of having better teammates. But this phenomenon has itself produced its own feedback loop. Now, because Steven Adams is so dominating in the paint, defenses have no choice but to commit extra defenders to him. In turn, the very floor spacers that created openings for Adams can now benefit from this effect – “reverse” floor spacing, as I would call it. The game film from last night proved this beyond a doubt.
Rolling gravity
At first glance, the play below looks no different from Andre Roberson getting alley-oops off backdoor cuts last season. Keener observation, however, tells a different story.
With Russell Westbrook running the pick-and-roll, Alex Abrines and Paul George camp out along the perimeter. In theory, defenses have no business leaving either sniper open. Instead, George’s man chooses to cheat so far off him, George has no issue sneaking in for a free run at the rim.
The answer here is Steven Adams. Just before this play, the Thunder run the exact same high pick-and-roll between Westbrook and Adams, resulting in an alley-oop. Scarred by the big man, the Pacers defense chooses to shrink towards the middle and bump down on Adams, preventing him from getting to the rim. This gives PG13 the space he needs to get involved in the play.
MUST READ: The Kiwi Bible – Ultimate Guide to Steven Adams
Even without touching the ball, Adams creates space for his teammates. Mark of a “reverse” floor spacer.
Bane of the lanes
By now, Steven Adams has a reputation for being a bruising screener. But, this season, Adams has added another wrinkle to his game – screening while running the lane.
Plays like the one above often start when Adams has to contest jumpers at the top of the key. Instead of lingering back and hoping for a wild carom off the rim, Adams has made it a habit to bundle his way down the court as fast as he can. Sometimes this gets him deep position and an easy post-up. But most times, it is simply his way of creating space for others.
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Watch how three Pacer defenders lie waiting for Westbrook in the paint. Then in comes Steven Adams, enveloping two Pacers and commanding the attention of the third. This gives Westbrook just enough space to penetrate into the lane and kick the ball out to Abrines in the corner.
Floor spacing certain works in the traditional sense. But here, “three”-Señor has Adams to thank for his buckets.
Mouse in the house
The box score says it all – against the Pacers, Steven Adams racked up a whopping nine offensive rebounds. That is right, nine offensive rebounds. No wonder defenses are loath to leave in him alone.
Here, Carmelo Anthony flings up a wild prayer late into the shot clock. Guess who was there to answer that prayer? Surrounded by three Pacers, Steven Adams snags the missed shot, absorbs the contact and deftly makes the off-balance fade putback.
On nights like this, when Adams starts showing off his quiet combination of ball sense and soft touch, defenses have no choice but to clamp up on the young center. In turn, this gives the rest of the team more space to rebound or trackback – “reverse” floor spacing, in other words.
Finding perspective
Right now, Steven Adams is playing like a “reverse” floor spacer. Tonight’s game film showed at least three ways this is true. But, as always, the word “reverse” comes with its caveats.
There is a reason Adams does not get as much hype as the likes of Indiana’s Myles Turner. For Adams, being a “reverse” floor spacer means his effectiveness is still dependent on his teammates. But, as long as Adams is surrounded by enough shooters, and a point guard who can make the right passes, Adams is a valuable offensive tool.
Between the two, that second condition is almost guaranteed. Russell Westbrook already committed to the OKC Thunder. Paul George and Carmelo Anthony haven’t. The team won tonight, but it was nevertheless unconvincing. If the Thunder are serious about keeping its star talent beyond this season – and continuing to surround Steven Adams with elite wing shooters – the team has a lot more to work on.
Next: Kevin Durant is the only person still holding on
Till then, Thunder fans should savor in the new-found knowledge about their favorite Kiwi: Steven Adams is not just a big bruiser feeding on scraps, he’s a full-fledged “reverse” floor spacer for the rest of the team.
All stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.