Steven Adams unavailable for Aussie series

Steven Adams has ruled himself out of Tall Blacks contention. Photo / Getty

New Zealand NBA player Steven Adams will not be available for the Tall Blacks' series against Australia.

The Oklahoma City Thunder centre has pulled out of contention for Paul Henare's squad, citing scheduling conflicts.

Adams has informed Basketball New Zealand of his decision, citing how scheduling conflicts over the coming months and Adams' focus on the upcoming NBA season meant that he was unable to play in the lead up tour in Europe.

As a result, Adams felt joining the team so late would not be the right thing to do and he would therefore be withdrawing himself for the team, although noting he would still be interested in representing his country in the future.

"We are of course disappointed not to have Steve as part of the campaign as we try and qualify for the Olympic Games. He is a world class player and would add plenty to our group, just as we believe the Tall Blacks environment will offer plenty to Steve," said Henare.

"We have enjoyed good open dialogue with him throughout and feel that we have now established a level of communication that has both parties comfortable looking into the future.

"However, we also understand his position and the changes that have occurred at OKC in recent months, changes that have meant he must pay closer attention to what is happening in the States and for now Steve has reluctantly made the call not to join us. Our door is always open however and we look forward to continuing to build on the relationship with Steve and OKC to enable him to pull on the black singlet sooner rather than later."

Henare's side will now possess a frontcourt with Rob Loe and Tai Wynyard likely to take the bulk of the centre minutes alongside Isaac Fotu and Mika Vukona at power forward. Although they will still likely be competitive without Adams, his absence will be a big blow for their chances of causing a significant upset against a strong Australian side.

The Tall Blacks are currently in Europe preparing for the two games against the Australian Boomers on August 15 in Melbourne and August 18 in Wellington.