Steven Adams Key For Rockets vs. Warriors

Houston Rockets center Steven Adams will be important for the team against the Golden State Warriors.

Houston Rockets center Steven Adams reacts to a play during the third quarter against the Los Angeles Lakers. | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

The Houston Rockets will have a size advantage when they play the Golden State Warriors in their first round playoff series.

Because of that, veteran center Steven Adams will have the chance to play a massive role for the Rockets as they look to take down their archnemesis of the past decade.

"With a single-game season high of just 14 points, Adams isn't going to make headlines for his scoring. But for about 20 minutes every game, thanks to coach Ime Udoka's recent adoption of two-big lineups, the 31-year-old transforms NBA games into rugby scrums. With Adams and Alperen Sengun on the court together, the Rockets grabbed a jaw-dropping 50% of their misses, per Cleaning the Glass," ESPN's Zach Kram writes.

"For reference, other than the Rockets, the top offensive rebounding team this season was the Portland Trail Blazers, who were at 32%.

"In the playoffs, opposing defenses might expose the two-big Rockets lineups' lack of shooting and relegate Adams back to the bench. But the Adams-Sengun duo had a net rating of plus-29.9 -- the second best for any two-man lineup in the league with at least 150 minutes played, and the only non-Thunder duo in the top five. It gives the Rockets a unique wrinkle that might keep working in the postseason."

It will be interesting to see if the Rockets end up playing their double big lineup against a team that's small like the Warriors, but if they can find a way to crash the glass, they should have a chance to win the series.