Last week, the two sat down for a 20-minute interview with The Oklahoman. For it, they wore matching custom-made ‘Stache Brothers' shirts, which Kanter got for Adams. After it, both were asked to tape a 10-second promo video for the upcoming OKC marathon, cheering on runners.

“Once I got my eyes used to it,” Kanter rubbed above his lip. “I think it looks pretty cool.”

Take a lesson from the mustache origin story, which is just a peek into their budding, genuine friendship. Right away, the outgoing Adams embraced the mustache like he embraced Kanter's arrival, without worry. And because of it, the tentative Kanter learned to accept Adams then the mustache then the diminished role.

In professional sports – where money and fame and playing time are craved but not passed out equally – a relationship like theirs isn't supposed to work. But with these two, it so easily does. Why?

They decided to do it together. As the tape rolled, they turned it into a body-builder pose-off, grunting as they flexed and laughing as the other tried to match — one of their countless inside jokes.

Off the court, the personalities of these two international giants mesh so well. Which is strange. Because on it, their mindset is often opposite — a contrast created by such differing backgrounds, both in life and basketball.

Kanter is from Ankara, Turkey. By 14, he'd grown so good his parents sent him to Istanbul, the world's 13th most populated city, to play for Fenerbahce Ulker. At 16, he became the youngest player in Euroleague history. Kanter played in packed arenas. His teammates were adults. He flew to away games.

Meanwhile in New Zealand — an island country with eight million fewer citizens than the city of Istanbul — Adams had just discovered the game. It helped rescue him from a dark point in his life. After his father died, one of his brothers moved him to Scots College in Wellington. The gyms were empty. The environment, like his laid-back country, was relaxed. His teammates were schoolmates half his size. The NBA might as well have been played on Mars. Adams followed rugby.