Steven Adams

He appeared in 81 games (20 starts) and averaged 3.3 points, 4.1 rebounds (9th among NBA rookies) and 0.70 blocks (9th among NBA rookies) in 14.8 minutes.

In game 6 of the Thunder's second-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers, Adams recorded 10 points and a season-high 11 rebounds.

The Thunder reached the Western Conference Finals, where they were defeated by the San Antonio Spurs in six games.

Steven Funaki Adams (born 20 July 1993) is a New Zealand professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

He also became the first player out of Pittsburgh to be selected in the first round since 1999 when Vonteego Cummings was selected by the Indiana Pacers with the 26th overall pick.

After playing one season with the Wellington Saints, in 2011, Adams moved to the United States in 2012 to play college basketball for Pittsburgh.

While there was pressure for Adams to turn professional straight out of high school because it was believed he would never be able to qualify for the NCAA, Adams did well at Scots College and passed through the NCAA Clearinghouse after graduating from Scots in December 2011.

After graduating from Scots College in December 2011, Adams enrolled at Notre Dame Preparatory School, a well-known basketball prep school in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, for one semester.

In 2011, Adams played for the Wellington Saints of the National Basketball League.

He went unpaid by the Saints in order to keep his college eligibility.

He was named the New Zealand NBL Rookie of the Year and helped the Saints win the championship.

In 15 games for the Saints, he averaged 5.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.

In a 2012 interview, Adams recalled: "When I lost my dad, that was a big hit for me. I didn't have that parental guidance, and I kind of took advantage of it because I was a stupid idiot. I decided not to go to school a couple of times, go when I felt like it. I always lied to my brothers and sisters. They'd ask: 'Are you going to school?' I'd say 'yeah'. They eventually found out."

After the death of his father, Blossom Cameron rescued him from the streets of Rotorua being given legal guardianship and took him to Wellington.

Blossom Cameron took responsibility for Adams and introduced him to Wellington basketball legend Kenny McFadden.

McFadden accepted Adams into his basketball academy, and Blossom Cameron enrolled him in Scots College.

The only rule McFadden had for Adams was that he had to attend school every day if he wanted to play basketball.

It was arranged only so he could acclimate himself to American basketball before enrolling at Pittsburgh in June 2012.

In his lone season at Pittsburgh, Adams was named the Big East Preseason Rookie of the Year and earned Big East All-Rookie Team honours.

He started all 32 games during the 2012–13 season and averaged 7.2 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game.

Adams was selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder with the 12th overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft.

He was the Thunder's primary starting center for six consecutive seasons.

On 2 April 2013, Adams declared for the NBA draft, forgoing his final three years of college eligibility.

On 27 June 2013, Adams was selected with the 12th overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder, becoming the second New Zealander to be selected in the first round of an NBA draft.

On 12 July 2013, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Thunder.

In his NBA debut on 30 October 2013, Adams recorded two points, three rebounds, one assist and three fouls in 18½ minutes off the bench against the Utah Jazz.

On 8 November, in just his fifth NBA game, Adams recorded 17 points and 10 rebounds in a 119–110 win over the Detroit Pistons.

He failed to surpass either mark for the rest of the regular season.

At the conclusion of the 2013–14 season, Adams earned NBA All-Rookie Second Team honours.

In November 2020, after seven years in Oklahoma City, Adams was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans.

In August 2021, he was dealt to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Steven Adams was born in Rotorua, New Zealand, to a Tongan mother and an English father.

His father, Sid Adams, was from Bristol and served in the Royal Navy.

He settled in New Zealand where he fathered 18 children with five women.

Sid Adams stood 2.11 m tall, and his children inherited his height: Steven Adams' brothers average 2.06m tall, while his sisters average 1.83m.

Two of his half-sisters are athletes: Dame Valerie Adams is a dual Olympic gold medallist and four-time world champion shot-putter and Lisa Adams is a para athlete who has won gold at the Paralympics in shot-put.

His brothers, Warren and Sid Jr., had careers in the New Zealand National Basketball League.

His sister, Gabriella Adams-Gavet, has played basketball for the New Zealand national team.

Sid Adams was in his sixties when his youngest child Steven was born, and Sid died of stomach cancer when Steven was 13.

Adams has identified his father's death as one of the defining events of his life.