Utah Jazz: Pros and cons of the first-round series against OKC

Steven Adams

Let me start this out by saying that I think the narrative among several Jazz fans regarding Steven Adams isn’t entirely correct. Because of how exceptional Adams was in OKC’s December 5th victory over the Jazz compared to how much Gobert struggled, an assumption has arisen that Steven Adams ‘dominates’ Rudy Gobert.

Such was certainly the case in that game as Adams went for 20 points on 9-of-10 shooting while Gobert finished with a paltry five points on two field goal attempts. However, it’s important to remember that Gobert was far from 100 percent in that game as he was still recovering from his former leg injury.

Even if he had been 100 percent, it’s never wise to assume how two players match up against one another based on just one contest. Adams and Gobert only faced each other one other time this season, back on October 21, and in that game, Rudy finished with 16 points on 8-of-11 shooting and 13 rebounds while Adams put up just nine points on 3-of-6 shooting with five rebounds.

If you go back to last season, the two players were relatively average against one another, but Gobert had a slight edge. In three games against OKC (Gobert sat out one contest), Rudy averaged 12.3 points and 10.7 rebounds while shooting 69.6 percent from the field. In those same three contests, Adams put up just 10 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting 52 percent from the field.

In other words, with the exception of that one contest on December 5th when Rudy was less than healthy, saying that Adams dominates the matchup is quite the stretch. However, setting that all to one side (this is the cons section after all), let’s not deny that Adams is an absolute beast and he is sure to cause problems for Gobert and the Jazz during this series.

In my mind, Adams is one of the most underrated big men in the league. And while he doesn’t pull Rudy out of the paint or kill the Jazz with his jump shot, he’s still effective in several other ways, much like Gobert is for Utah. At 13.9 points and nine rebounds per game, he’s a force to be reckoned with and is also an exceptional rim protector and screen assist-man.

Although Melo is often considered the third member of OKC’s Big-3, I often like to think of Stevens as their true third best player. He does so much to make the Thunder better and very well could cause Gobert issues with his physicality and unrelenting nature.

Again, Adams isn’t Gobert’s Kryptonite or the one who spells doomsday for him by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, it’s not a stretch to say that Gobert has won the matchup the past two seasons. However, he’s undoubtedly one of the Thunder’s most valuable players and could do plenty of damage in a playoff series.