Steven Adams explains why he doesn't talk to Tim Duncan

Despite being a highly effective option on both ends of the court, Oklahoma City Thunder center Steven Adams is mostly known for being an agitator.

Never one to back down from a challenge and always one to impose his physicality upon the opponent, Adams often finds himself entangled in wrestling matches in the paint.

But against Tim Duncan, he does none of that. He doesn't even talk to the 39-year-old veteran when tasked with the challenge of stopping the Big Fundamental. He learned that lesson a long time ago.

"He's not really crazy athletic, but he like, destroys you," Adams explained. "And he's a nice guy. That was my biggest mistake as a rookie. I was hitting him all the time and he was having trouble with it. And then he came over and talked to me a bit.

"He was like, 'Hey man, how are you?' And I was like 'Oh, what a nice guy.' And then he just dropped 20 from there on. I told (assistant coach Mark Bryant) and he was like, that's a vet move. Don't do that. You can't be nice."

So the new approach for Adams is this:

"I don't talk to him. He tries to talk to me. I'm stone-faced, looking at something else just trying to ignore him. That's my game plan."