Adams made history as the first player from New Zealand to be chosen in the First Round (13th Overall in 2013). Year after year, his playing time has increased, and in his fourth season, Adams had a breakout of sorts, cracking the double-digit mark in Points per Game while mainting a strong defensive game. Adams was not a premier scorer, but he maintained the ten-plus mark in PPG over the rest of his tenure in OKC, and would have two campaigns where he cracked 20 in PER.
As OKC struggled, Adams was dealt to New Orleans as part of a massive four-team trade. With the Thunder, Adams had a 17.2 PER with averages of 9.8 Points, 7.6 Rebounds and 1.0 Blocks per Game.