Houston Rockets: Breaking down the case for Clint Capela’s first All-Star bid
By T.A. Mock
He’s responded well to a more featured role in the offense
The Houston Rockets feature to excellent offensive players in Harden and Paul. Typically, Trevor Ariza and Eric Gordon have been next in line to pick up the “slack.” However, Ariza is now plying his trade in Pheonix while Gordon has struggled to find his shot all season long.
So, the Rockets have needed to feature someone else as an offensive go-getter alongside Harden and Paul. Capela has stepped into that role and thrived. His usage is way up from years past on the offensive end, he is taking nearly three more shots per game while actually slightly upping his conversion rate over his league-high field goal percentage from last year, from 65.2% to 65.4%.
He has also upped his points per game by quite a bit this year, from 13.9 to 17.3. His points per game is currently third on the team but only fractions of a point behind Paul’s 17.9. Capela’s 11.6 shots per game are third on the team while his 7.6 makes per game are second on the team behind Harden.
light. Also. Ennis and Clark have formed quite the 1-2 punch
In addition, Capela has also been able to slightly improve his free throw percentage on more attempts per game. To be sure, it’s still not very good, 59.7%, but he is continually improving and really has only had about three or four games that have really negatively affected that percentage.
League-wide, Capela’s 65.4% field goal conversion rate is tied for third with Montrezl Harrell behind Rudy Gobert and Domantas Sabonis. Capela’s 136 two-point makes are also good for 8th in the league behind a star-studded top seven. Capela’s true shooting percentage and effective shooting percentage are 8th and 5th in the league, respectively, as well.
Capela’s game has also continued to evolve to be more than just lobs and dump offs. His work with Hakeem Olajuwon has kept on paying dividends as his post moves are ever growing in skill and effectiveness. On top of that, his increase in offensive rebounds has given him more putback opportunities.