The Houston Rockets continue to make waves throughout the NBA in the aftermath of the blockbuster trade that brought future Hall of Fame forward Kevin Durant to the franchise.
In the opening hours of free agency, Houston stole Dorian Finney-Smith away from the Los Angeles Lakers by agreeing to a four-year, $53 million contract, re-signed three of their veterans in Jae'Sean Tate, Jeff Green, and Aaron Holiday, and now they have reunited with a former big man.
While Alperen Sengun is the future at the center position for the Rockets, you can never have enough quality depth in the frontcourt, and Rafael Stone has fortified that spot in Houston.
Rockets Continue Offseason Splurge With Shocking Signing of Capela
Clint Capela is returning to the Lone Star State after agreeing to a three-year, $21.5 million contract with the Rockets. With Sengun, Steven Adams, and Capela now in the fold, Houston has one of the more formidable groups in the entire league at the 5 spot, and that will allow head coach Ime Udoka to get even more creative with his rotations.
Free agent center Clint Capela has agreed to a three-year, $21.5 million deal with the Houston Rockets, sources tell ESPN. Major frontcourt addition – and return to Houston for Capela. pic.twitter.com/1l20sBt9p2
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 30, 2025
What this signing means is that another move could be on the way, as NBA Salary Cap Analyst Yossi Gozlan has pointed out. Houston does not have the cap space available to sign Capela to this contract outright, which means either this deal or the aforementioned deal for Finney-Smith could evolve into a sign-and-trade.
This past season, the 31-year-old big man appeared in 55 games for the Hawks, starting in 41 of those contests, and averaged 8.9 points and 8.5 rebounds in just over 21 minutes per game. While these averages were Capela's lowest since the 2015-16 campaign, his second season in the NBA, the Rockets will not be asking him to be a key contributor.
If Capela can come in, play the type of supporting role behind Sengun and Adams that will be asked of him, and help Houston to a deep postseason run, this will be a slam dunk of a signing for Houston.