By Ben Francis
This will be a big year for Steven Adams.
The 23-year-old is expected to have a bigger role for the Oklahoma City Thunder as they enter a new era without Serge Ibaka and superstar Kevin Durant.
That will see Adams step up as arguably the second best player on the squad, behind all-star Russell Westbrook.
"It's all the same stuff bro," Adams told a reporter at the Thunder media day.
"I'm just going to show up and play regardless. As long as we win the games, that's all it comes down to."
Along with taking on a bigger role, Adams will be also claim a more senior position given all the new players the Thunder acquired during the off-season.
"It's good having this different approach - so Domantas Sabonis, who I have to teach some new things, they've given me a bit of responsibility to kind of teach him some stuff," said Adams.
"There's a big role in that - I kind of feel like a father, so congrats to me."
With seven players standing over 2.08 metres as well as a number of athletic wing players and the explosive Russell Westbrook, it will be interesting to see how the Thunder fare in the tough Western conference.
"There is a lot of excitement, because there are different players in our team and the chemistry off the court is really good and helps a lot with on the court performance," said Adams.
Oklahoma City will start their pre-season with a match against Spanish side Real Madrid on October 4 (NZT) and will begin their 2016-2017 NBA campaign against the Philadelphia 76ers on October 27 (NZT).
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