Houston Rockets Rumors: 3 guys who need to step up after Capela’s injury

Nene, C

The play of Nene isn’t something the Houston Rockets can expect on a night in, night out basis. Nene just isn’t capable of providing 20+ minutes every night as Capela does and like he used to do in his prime, it’s simply not feasible for the 36-year-old.

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Nene, similarly to Chriss and, well, a lot of the Rockets roster, has missed a good chunk of time to injury so far this season. So far, he has only appeared in 17 contests playing in 13.5 minutes per game. That’s a decent chunk of playing time but it’s the number of games that is more concerning.

Nene would likely have to play in only one game of back-to-backs and probably could play more than two or three games in a week for the Rockets. However, his performance in those two or three games will be key to covering up the void left by Capela.

Nene is still capable of providing solid minutes in those limited number of games, including some crazy spurts reminiscent of his prime where he flashes incredible post moves that beat anyone and a rebounding prowess that can out hustle everyone.

If he can give the Rockets a couple games a week at that level, they’ll be able to compete and continue to rise up the rankings in the Western Conference. Pairing his ability with those of the two youngsters previously mentioned, the Houston Rockets will be just fine.

This season, Clint Capela is blowing his previous career highs out of the water for the Houston Rockets. He is averaging over 17 points a game and nearly 13 rebounds per game while also blocking 2 shots per game with a 63.1% field goal percentage.