Clint Capela, the big man for the Atlanta Hawks, has seen a lot in his time. In his career, he has participated in three Game 7. Fortunately for him, he has prevailed in two of the three.
One occurred in 2021 when the Hawks played the Philadelphia 76ers. The other, which was his first, occurred in 2015 when the Houston Rockets played the Los Angeles Clippers. But for the previous rebounding champion, that one loss—against the Golden State Warriors in 2018—still resonates.
His erstwhile fan base was sparked by his social media nostalgia.
On May 19, Capela said on X, “Up double digits at half and lose a game 7 at home.. ugh been there.” “WOLVES ARE SIZEABLE!”
One admirer responded to Capela, saying, “Brought back memories I was trying to forget.”
The Rockets defeated the eventual repeat champion Warriors in Games 4 and 5, coming back from a 1-2 deficit. However, they lost Game 6, as their 11-point advantage at the half evaporated in a 33-15 third quarter, and failed to bounce back in Game 7.
Another admirer said, “Clint pls why do you have to remind us,” emphasizing the message with a sad face emoji.
“Cmon, Clint,” said one more admirer.
After that, Capela stayed in Houston for two more seasons. However, the Rockets were ousted by the Warriors again the next season, this time in six games, and were unable to go past the second round.
Due to Capela’s absence throughout the second half of the season and his limited number of games played, the Rockets did not make it to the postseason in 2020.
The next offseason, Capela was acquired by the Hawks.
The year the Hawks upset Philadelphia, he played a key role in their march to the Eastern Conference Finals. But as he approaches the latter year of his $45.8 million, two-year deal, Capela’s future is, at best, uncertain.
Nevertheless, Capela has continued to concentrate on basketball, much like colleague Trae Young in comparable situations.
The Timberwolves overcame a 20-point deficit, including a 15-point deficit at halftime, to win 98-90. The fact that Capela’s evaluation came just after praising Nuggets player and current three-time MVP Nikola Jokic may be what makes it stand out the most.
During the competition, Capela wrote about Jokic, saying, “This brate [brother] is a bully.”
But once his team’s title defense ended prematurely, even Jokic had to admit the influence the Wolves roster had on them.
Young also mentioned the Wolves, whose team is notable for being built with defensive, long-range alternatives at every position. The Hawks would be extremely smart to perfect this recipe—possibly even before splitting up their all-star backcourt.
This might indicate that Capela is moving during the off-season.
Over the last month and a half of the regular season, he performed better than his season statistics indicate, averaging 12.4 points, 11.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.2 blocks over the final 21 games.
The deal of Dejounte Murray to the Atlanta Hawks in the 2022 offseason is already hurting them.
When they acquired Murray from the San Antonio Spurs, they had high expectations for a dynamic backcourt, but they haven’t seen any consistent evidence of it. They missed the playoffs this year despite being a Play-In Tournament team the previous two years.
Regarding his all-star backcourt, general manager Landry Fields was brutally honest.
According to Fields, the sample size is growing steadily greater, as she informed reporters in February. “The statistics speak for themselves on that; I can’t lie to you.”
Similar to how he acted with the first overall choice, Fields has been cautious not to provide any information about the Hawks backcourt intentions. Whatever he decides to do with the roster, he will have a harder time going forward given the deal for Murray, who was a major factor in forcing out his predecessor.
The $114 million contract deal he inked and the 2023 first-round selection (from the Charlotte Hornets) were only the beginning.
Atlanta won’t have custody of their first-round pick until the 2028 campaign after this one.
Along with a trade in 2026, they sent first-round selections in 2025 and 2027. Additionally, they are prohibited by league rules from moving their 2028 first-round selection outright, which may mean they won’t be allowed to trade a pick until 2029. Tanking is basically eliminated till that point.
Fields stated they had no intention of backing down at the deadline, so there’s solid reason to believe him on that point.
It may also hint at what he intends to do this offseason.
He will, however, once more have to face the realities of the Murray trade. Fields could have to overpay from his stash of draft capital and player contracts if he doesn’t have draft selections in order to make up the difference in a deal.
In addition to Murray and Young, they have a number of expensive veterans that might be traded, including Bogdan Bogdanovic, Clint Capela, and De’Andre Hunter.
However, the cap crisis, another negative consequence of the Murray transaction, is highlighted by their availability.
If the Hawks re-sign restricted free agent Saddiq Bey, they will undoubtedly over the $8 million luxury tax threshold. In the history of the franchise, they have only paid the luxury tax twice.
After the tax went into force in 2022–2023 season, they were assessed the tax and became one of the first teams to pay.
According to Dunc’d on Prime, the Hawks also made the lowest tax payment in team history in 2012.
In recent years, they have aggressively evaded the tax, parting with Kevin Huerter and John Collins, at least in part, on worries about the wage ceiling. Even while the returns have emphasized the financial side, their performance on the court may have justified the moves.
That was further highlighted by moving Collins for a conditional second-round selection and an older veteran in Rudy Guy, and then flipping Gay and the money obtained by dealing him away.
In less than two months, the Hawks’ $20.5 million Collins trade exception will run out.
As long as the player mix is correct, their choice of whether or not to employ it might reveal a lot about their genuine desire to spend, which is generally linked to NBA success. The Hawks have demonstrated a desire to invest.
To break through the glass barrier they’ve been facing for the past few years, how far are they ready to go?
