Without Steven Adams, the Oklahoma City Thunder would not have knocked off the heavily-favored San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference semifinals. They probably should not have had Adams in the lineup for Game 6 Thursday night, but the dude is tough as nails.
Adams, who dominated the low post once again in the series-clincher, had a horrible migraine before the game. It was so bad he was throwing up and receiving IV fluids rather than warming up with his teammates.
“Start throwing up,” Adams described, per Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. “Thumping headache. Feels like an old mate with a sledgehammer is just pounding at the back of my eye.”
The feeling was all too familiar for the seven-footer, as Adams has been getting migraines since he was 14. He said he knows when they’re coming because he’ll be looking at someone and their “face will disappear.” The splitting headache usually results in blurred vision and severe nausea.
“If I eat a food and throw it up, I’m off that food for life,” Adams explained. “It sucks. I’ve actually had some favorite foods that I no longer like because of it.”
Adams scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the series. He played a whopping 40 minutes, which was his highest total of the postseason. The Spurs had no answer for the 22-year-old in a game that Thunder guard Andre Roberson compared to Michael Jordan’s famous flu game.
Adams would not go that far.
“Man, don’t think I’m a hero or anything,” he said. “It’s just modern medicine, mate.”
Modern medicine can only do so much. There’s no way Adams was feeling close to 100 percent, and that doesn’t go unnoticed by teammates.
Adams felt dizzy for a much different reason during Game 4. The end result was the same in both games. Unfortunately, it would appear his nausea is a good luck charm for OKC.
