Adams and his enormous ilk increasingly center of attention

OKLAHOMA CITY - Steven Adams is invaluable to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

He's also a reminder: Big men in the NBA are still vital. The imposing 7-foot center from New Zealand is helping change the recent narrative that NBA centers are an endangered species, something that - based on spending and drafting this summer - is evidently not the case.

The perimeter-oriented and defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors landed All-Star DeMarcus Cousins this summer, albeit on a $5.3 million bargain deal. NBA teams went big at this year's draft, with Deandre Ayton and Marvin Bagley going No 1 and No 2 and centers taking four of the first seven spots.