Steven Adams holding own against NBA rookies

Former Pitt center Steven Adams is well into his rookie season in the NBA with the Oklahoma City Thunder and while Adams isn't starring, he is definitely holding his own with other first-year players.

Adams' scoring has been coming along fairly slowly, but his 4.8 points per contest as of Thursday aren't terrible. In fact, that was good enough to place him in a tie for 12th. His 45% field goal percentage is proof that he needs to be a more efficient scorer, but while he's not been great offensively, he is contributing.

The outlook on his rebounding, as I wrote about recently, has been more favorable. Adams' 5.1 rebounds per contest are tied for third among rookies, and the two players ahead of him, guard Michael Carter-Williams and Kelly Olynyk, are playing more minutes than he is. His 13 rebounds per 48 minutes are more than both of those players.

And of course, Adams is blocking shots. In fact, his 1.25 per game led all rookies as of Thursday. Adams also has a double double and is one of only three rookies to tally one so far.

The big man won't be the Rookie of the Year, but if he keeps progressing and gets a few more minutes, he might have an outside chance at landing on the All-Rookie Team. In his first season, Adams is finding ways to fit in and contribute.

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