You know, that is a really good question actually. Maybe he focused disproportionately on weight training in the offseason, and now he is playing himself into basketball shape.
The Hakeem comparisons are a little far fetched. Stop it. If we get Ibaka production out of Capela, I'd be happy. Ibaka developed a jump shot over time.
I hope that is indeed the case. Kinda of disheartening to see Capela doing so well and...all of a sudden see him sitting in the bench because dude needs a breathier. I thought when you are 21 you could run forever.
Agreed. The first and most important thing Capela should learn how to do is catch and shoot efficiently. If he had that ability combined with his athleticism, his usage and productivity would go off the charts in our system. Can you imagine him setting the pick high and then James and him being able to read the defense for either the roll or the pop? He would be lethal and he would make our offense lethal with the simple ability to pick-pop-catch-and-shoot. Watch the games. I seriously doubt if there is any other centers in the league that have to get up and down more than our centers do. Not unless you're talking about the Warriors small-ball lineup with Green playing the 5. The amount of up-and-downs he has to run is crazy. I'm sure he could be in better shape. But.....he gets up and down as much or more than any 7-footer in the league.
Clint Capela is dominating the pick-and-roll, earning his nickname By Ethan Rothstein @ethanrothstein on Nov 10, 2015, 8:46a 8 Jennifer Stewart-USA TODAY Sports The Swiss Roll has looked fantastic running the basic play of the Rockets offense TWEET (14) SHARE PIN The Rockets' offensive system is not complicated. There's a ton of high pick-and-rolls for James Harden — he's got 53 plays already as the PnR ball-handler through the first seven games, 11th-most in the league, per NBA.com — shooters around the perimeter to swing the ball around. Everything else is a variation on that basic set. It's that simplicity that has led to lulls that have Rockets fans pulling their hair out at times and bashing head coach Kevin McHale on social media and in our colorful comment section. But it also allows athletic big men to thrive, and that's exactly what it's done for Clint Capela early in the season. The Swiss Roll is rolling and dunking his way toward becoming a terrifying offensive bench cog. Friday night against the Kings, Capela got the start with Dwight Howard sitting on a back-to-back, and he notched his first career double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Look at his highlights from the first quarter, and look how effective he is on dives to the basket. THE SWISS ROLL IS SHOOTING 79.4 PERCENT FROM THE FLOOR, LEADING THE NBA Capela has a terrific sense of timing, knowing to put himself not only in position to make the catch and give Harden a lane to pass the ball into, but also in a spot where he can finish without putting the ball on the floor. The numbers bear it out: through Saturday's games, he's averaging 1.18 points per possession as the roll man in the PnR, scoring on 63.6% of his rolls, putting him in the 79th percentile in the league. Part of the reason that he's so effective is he's been insane at finishing: The Swiss Roll is shooting 79.4 percent from the floor, leading the NBA, among players with at least 11 attempts (Kendrick Perkins has made 8-10 shots on the year, in case you're curious about the qualifier). It's no surprise he's developed like this: he's got Dwight Howard, one of the league's most dominant roll men over the last decade, in his ear, showing him the ropes. Many don't consider Dwight a leader, but he's shown a complete willingness to take young players under his wing, and Capela is no different. The Swiss Roll doesn't have quite as many natural gifts as Superman did when he entered the league, but he's not far off. We saw this coming On Sep. 3, we wrote that a breakout was coming. Not to brag or anything. Another play Kid Capela has been Superman-esque: the putback. According to NBA.com, he's in the 100th percentile — you read that right — on putbacks, making nine of his 10 attempts so far. Only three guys have made more putbacks this year: Ozymandias Andre Drummond, Enes Kanter and Kosta Koufos. Those three average 38, 21.4 and 25.7 minutes a game, respectively. The Swiss Roll is averaging 18.8. All of this is to say: Clint Capela is really good. He's not merely a really good prospect anymore (although he's still that, rest assured), he's simply a really good player. He has some things to work on: he's only taken 10 shots from farther out than three feet so far, and he's made a not-terrible 50 percent of those. But he has no jump shot whatsoever. That is years away from developing, if it ever does (Dwight's never did). The biggest issue at this point is the fouling. He's at 5.5 per 36 minutes, and considering a Dwight Howard injury could be around the corner at any moment, that's got to come down. Capela is good enough that he now has a responsibility to avoid silly fouls — especially early in games — and stay on the floor as much as possible. But that's a nitpick. Five and a half fouls in 36 minutes isn't fouling out, it's just coming close. This is small-sample-size theater to the max, but Capela has .238 win shares per 48 minutes so far this year. Rudy Gobert — who Rockets fans would have no problem watching Capela develop into — averaged .206 last year while finishing No. 3 in Defensive Player of the Year voting. Call him the Swiss Roll, A Capela, Kid Capela, Baby Deer, whatever. At this point, it matters not (although you should really call him the Swiss Roll). Just don't call him a project anymore. Clint Capela is a player.
I call that the Scola Shot. And it would be awesome to have that again, even in this system that disfavors midrange.
Generally agree, though I would put refinement of his defensive game (e.g. communicating) up there with shooting. If he develops a pick and pop game with the Rockets playing shooters at 1-4, the Rockets would likely have the best offense.
I don't get the Ibaka comparison. Capela and Ibaka are very different types of players. Capela is a long and athletic center who will mostly play near the basket. Ibaka is a stretch 4 who can block shots. The Hakeem comparison is not far fetched. Nobody is saying that he will achieve Hakeem's level (although some believe that he has that potential). The comparison is about how they both are very fluid and natural on the court even when they are obviously very raw. If Capela never develops an offensive game, he will be more like DeAndre Jordan than Ibaka. If he does develop an offensive game, he will be more like Hakeem than Ibaka.
My favorite thing about Capela is how he defends post players. It is unreal. Good post players go up against him, back him down, get into their rhythm, go for their little hook, and Capela just bounces up and blocks it -- or at least challenges it enough to make them miss. I love it. Capela is so much fun to watch. It is really a pleasure to watch young players like him and Donatus grow and develop in front of us. I hope McHale experiments some more with Howard and Capela sharing the court in certain situations. I know spacing would be an issue, but I think it is a viable option against certain rosters.
I was about to post something very similar, so instead, let me just say I completely agree. I also see other peeps saying his ceiling is Mutombo, but Capela is much more fluid and has better hands than Mutombo ever did. Just with those attributes, he can be a deadly pick and roll player, which was something Mutombo never was. I think that if Capela wants it, he can become a superstar.
Glad the Rockets fetched him up on Draft night! The young talent has the potential to be a key piece of this team for the next 12 years!!!!
Even though I agree with your sentiment I have to say we must temper out imaginations and expectations at the moment. Once the guy learns to shoot a free throw with ease, then we can move on to him analyzing defenses in the P&R game and working in a mid-range jumper. Once he fixes his mechanics and muscle memory on free throws the mid-range game should follow... Ibaka is a perfect comparison to Capela's potential. He won't be a world beater but he'll be a way more than above average role player (almost borderline all-star level, almost).
Didn't McHale have Dwight and Asik at the same time against the Blazers playoff series? I wouldn't put it past McHale to have Dwight and Capela in a defensive situation late in a game.
That was out of necessity(and desperation) after Aldridge lit up T-Jones in the first 2 games. I'm pretty sure McHale would prefer not to play 2 centers if he can help it.
Clint is still getting better every day. Amazing. It is a joy to watch him run down the court, defend all over the court and dunk I think that he will soon be talked about for all defensive teams.
Nonsense. Is the D-league horrible for KJ and Montrezl? When we drafted Clint we never thought he would be playing big minutes at this point. I think Morey wanted him to play in Europe for a couple of years. I also wish he could have spent more time in the D-league. The D-league is perfect for young players to develop the different parts of their game. Last year when Clint was playing with the Vipers, they would run the pick and roll over and over again. Offensively, he really hasn't advanced all that much. I know he has the skill to add to his offensive Arsenal. But it's hard to work on these new moves during Rocket games. The D-league would be perfect for Clint at this stage of his development. Sometimes Clint gets position in the paint, but he doesn't get the ball. I've even seen Clint call for the ball, but he is ignored. All he gets to do is the pick and roll and alley oops. If Clint was in the D-league he could be working on adding new moves during actual games. It's just not the same in practice. Unfortunately, the Rockets need Clint too much to allow him any D-league time.
You know our players are humans with feelings too, right? Backup center to DLeague? That's not going to sit well with him
