Clint Capela Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Rockets Re-Sign Chris Chiozza

March 23rd, 2019 at 12:32pm CST by Luke Adams

MARCH 23: The signing of Chiozza is official, the team announced in a press release (Twitter link).

MARCH 22: After signing a 10-day contract with the Rockets last month, Chris Chiozza will soon return to the team, according to Adam Johnson of 2 Ways & 10 Days (via Twitter). League sources tell Johnson that the Rockets intend to sign Chiozza to a rest-of-season contract.

Chiozza, 23, went undrafted out of Florida in 2018 before joining the Wizards in the fall for training camp. After being waived by Washington, he has spent most of his rookie season in the G League with the Capital City Go-Go, averaging 13.2 PPG, 7.7 APG, 4.7 RPG, and 1.9 SPG with a .438/.407/.760 shooting line in 47 NBAGL games (33.5 MPG). Despite joining the Rockets for 10 days after the All-Star break, Chiozza has yet to make his regular-season NBA debut.

The Rockets are currently carrying 13 players on their roster, so adding Chiozza will get them back to the league-mandated 14-player minimum. Teams that dip below 14 players are given a two-week window to reach that minimum. Since Terrence Jones‘ 10-day contract expired overnight on March 13, Houston still has several days before that window expires, so it’s not clear if Chiozza will be re-signed right away.

If the Rockets wait a few more days to sign Chiozza, it could help ensure that the team stays out of tax territory. Still, as cap expert Albert Nahmad detailed last week (via Twitter), Houston should remain safely under the tax line for 2018/19 as long as Clint Capela doesn’t earn either of his $500K bonuses for a 65% free-throw rate or a 30% defensive rebound rate. Currently, the big man is not on track to meet either benchmark.

Southwest Notes: Parsons, House, Mills, Capela

February 21st, 2019 at 7:47pm CST by JD Shaw

Grizzlies forward Chandler Parsons is set to rejoin the rotation for the remainder of the season, David Cobb of the Memphis Commercial Appeal writes. Parsons has played just three games this season, mutually agreeing to separate from the team early last month as trade talks began to heat up.

“He’ll get minutes like everybody else,” head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said of Parsons, according to Cobb. “Because of the layoff, he’ll probably have to play through some bumps. But the expectation is for him to contribute and help us win. Those are the guys I’ll always play.”

Parsons’ tenure with the Grizzlies has been tumultuous since he originally joining the franchise on a maximum-salary deal in the summer of 2016. Despite his future looking murky before this month’s deadline, Parsons insists he had no interest in leaving the team in a trade.

“Honestly, no,” Parsons said. “This is just as new a start as going to a new team, except that I’m familiar with the city, familiar with the coaching staff, the defensive terminology. I wanted to play. I’ve wanted to play since I was cleared two months ago. That hasn’t changed. I chose to come here, and I still want to be here. I wasn’t going to just stay in L.A. and watch my team play for the last six weeks of the season. I was going to come, and that’s that.”

Parsons was sidelined to start the season with knee soreness, but has worked his way back to game shape after several months away from the court. The Grizzlies own the second-worst record in the Western Conference at 23-36.

There’s more from the Southwest Division tonight:

Danuel House is hopeful to return to the Rockets this season, he stated in an interview with David Yapkowitz of Basketball Insiders. “Hopefully I can go back to Houston and compete for a title,” he said. “There’s nothing like learning from James [Harden] and Chris Paul, Gerald Green, Eric Gordon and those guys. And now with the additions of [Iman] Shumpert and Kenneth Faried, I’m just excited to hopefully get something done so I can be out there and competing with those guys.” House was unable to agree on a new contract with the Rockets last month, currently playing for the team’s G League affiliate in Rio Grande.
Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News details how Patty Mills became the heart and soul of the Spurs, labeling his leadership, commitment and selfless style of play with the franchise over the past eight seasons. “It’s much bigger than me, much bigger than what all of us here today are,” Mills said. “It’s about the past, and about the future. I think it’s really important for the new guys to understand that.”
The Rockets are excited about the return of Clint Capela, who missed 15 straight games following thumb surgery and is set to return on Thursday against the Lakers, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle writes. “We’re excited to get Clint back,” teammate P.J. Tucker said. “Clint is a huge piece to our team and he makes a lot of other people’s jobs a lot easier. He makes our defense be able to switch on to guards and be able to guard guards and protect the rim as well, changes the dynamic for us.”

Injury Updates: Howard, Capela, Dinwiddie, Hayward

February 20th, 2019 at 10:37am CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards‘ big free agent signing of the 2018 offseason hasn’t worked out as planned so far, as health issues have limited Dwight Howard to just nine games this season. However, Howard – who underwent surgery on his spine in November, appears to be making progress toward a return.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter), Howard is scheduled to return to Washington today to begin on-court work. With the Wizards’ playoff hopes on life support, the team could use the veteran center back in its lineup to provide rebounding and low-post scoring down the stretch. As Ben Standig of NBC Sports Washington notes though, it’s still not clear whether Howard is ready to participate in full practices or when he might be able to play in a game.

Here are a few more injury-related updates from around the NBA:

Rockets center Clint Capela returned to practice on Tuesday after missing 15 games with a thumb injury, tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com. According to MacMahon, Capela is on track to get back in Houston’s lineup on Thursday, assuming he doesn’t have any setbacks this week.
Spencer Dinwiddie, who continues to recover from a thumb injury of his own, still doesn’t have a set timeline for his return, according to Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson. As Brian Lewis of The New York Post details, Atkinson wouldn’t confirm that he expects Dinwiddie back on the court for Brooklyn’s upcoming 17-day road trip, which begins on March 13.
Gordon Hayward twisted his ankle in a Tuesday workout, Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said today to reporters, including Adam Kaufman of NBC Sports Boston (Twitter link). While that sounds like concerning news on the surface, particularly given Hayward’s strong recent play, Kaufman notes that the injury is to the forward’s right ankle, not his surgically repaired left ankle. He’s considered day-to-day.

Southwest Notes: Capela, Noah, Wright, Doncic

February 13th, 2019 at 10:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Rockets are optimistic that injured center Clint Capela will be ready to return after the All-Star break, relays Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Capela, who missed his 15th straight game tonight, hasn’t played since Jan. 13 when he injured ligaments in his right thumb.

He has been working out for several weeks and will start practicing with the team after the break concludes. Capela is the Rockets’ top rebounder at 12.6 per game and ranks third in the league in field goal percentage at 63.1%.

“He’s doing everything without contact,” coach Mike D’Antoni said. “I guess those two practices will determine whether he will play the first game (after the break) or not.”

Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

Joakim Noah calls the opportunity to resume his career with the Grizzlies “a blessing” after a disastrous experience with the Knicks, tweets K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. Noah wasn’t always sure that he wanted to keep playing after becoming an outcast in New York, but he has been rejuvenated by a second chance in Memphis. “I didn’t want to leave the game like that,” he said. “I’ve worked too hard my whole life. I’ve always been somebody who loves basketball, loves to compete. I wanted to find that again.” (Twitter link)
The Grizzlies traded offense for defense at the backup point guard position in a pair of deals last week, writes David Cobb of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Memphis sent Shelvin Mack to the Hawks and replaced him by picking up Delon Wright in a trade with the Raptors. Wright can’t match Mack’s outside shooting prowess, but he made the Pac 12 All-Defensive Team twice in college and has the size to guard several positions. The Grizzlies can make Wright a restricted free agent this summer by extending a a $3.64MM qualifying offer.
An online gambling site has stopped taking wagers on the Rookie of the Year race, figuring Mavericks guard Luka Doncic already has the award wrapped up, relays Joey Hayden of The Dallas Morning News. David Strauss of MyBookie said the site is ready to pay out more than $150K to bettors who put money on Doncic.

Clint Capela Undergoes Surgery, Expected To Miss 4-6 Weeks

January 17th, 2019 at 7:28pm CST by Luke Adams

JANUARY 17: Capela underwent successful surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb, general manager Daryl Morey announced on Thursday. Capela is expected to miss four to six weeks of action, as previously reported.

JANUARY 14: The injury bug continues to plague the Rockets. Already down multiple key contributors, Houston will now be without starting center Clint Capela for the next four to six weeks due to a right thumb injury, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarwoski (Twitter link). According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), an MRI on the injury showed ligament damage.

The Rockets have been playing well lately despite both Chris Paul and Eric Gordon being sidelined with injuries of their own, largely due to the efforts of Capela and MVP candidate James Harden. With Capela now on the shelf too, Harden will face his most difficult challenge of 2018/19 so far as he looks to keep Houston in a playoff position. Currently, the 24-18 Rockets are tied for fifth in the West, but the ninth-seeded Jazz are 23-21, so there’s not a whole lot of room for error.

After signing a lucrative new five-year contract with the Rockets in the offseason, Capela is enjoying the best season of his five-year career, establishing new highs in PPG (17.6), RPG (12.6), APG (1.5), and several other categories.

With Capela out, the Rockets will lean more heavily on Nene, with Isaiah Hartenstein and Marquese Chriss among their other options at the five. The team may also try to get away with more small-ball lineups, using someone like P.J. Tucker at center.

A roster move would benefit the Rockets, but they don’t have a ton of roster or financial flexibility to add help at this point. There’s an opening on their 15-man roster, but two-way player Danuel House seems likely to claim that spot very soon. If that happens, Houston would open up a two-way slot for a new addition — the deadline to sign a player to a two-way contract is Tuesday.

If the Rockets feel the need to create another opening on their 15-man roster, the most obvious move would be to finally release Carmelo Anthony. In that scenario, the team could turn to 10-day contracts or a rest-of-season signing to address its frontcourt. However, the in-the-tax Rockets will have to be wary of increasing their projected tax bill with any signings.

Western Notes: Capela, Brunson, Kings, Roberson

January 14th, 2019 at 10:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Clint Capela‘s thumb injury could cost him a $2MM bonus, Bobby Marks of ESPN notes. The Rockets center has a 2,000-minute criteria tied into the team reaching the Western Conference Finals and for a defensive rebounding percentage above 30%. He has another bonus for attempting 150 or more free throws and a free throw percentage above 65%. He is currently shooting 62.6% from the line. Through 42 games, Capela has played 1,436 minutes. He is expected to miss 4-6 weeks.

We have more from around the Western Conference:

Mavericks rookie Jalen Brunson and veteran Devin Harris will pick up the minutes vacated by backup point guard J.J. Barea, who suffered a torn Achilles on Friday, according to Callie Caplan of the Dallas Morning News. Brunson played 30 minutes against the Warriors on Sunday but Harris will see his role expand as well. “He’s going to be ready and he’s going to be there for us,” coach Rick Carlisle said of Harris.
Kings assistant coaches under Dave Joerger are having their options for next season picked up by the front office, Sam Amick of USA Today tweets. That group includes Bryan Gates, Elston Turner, Bob Thornton, Jason March, Duane Ticknor, Larry Lewis, Bobby Jackson, Phil Ricci and Dan Hartfield. It’s a way of aligning the contracts of the staff with Joerger’s deal. The surprising Kings are currently a game above .500.
Kings GM Vlade Divac warned members of the executive board to stop meddling in the team’s affairs, Sam Amick of USA Today reports. Divac made the pronouncement during a conference call with 13 members of the executive board, along with lead owner Vivek Ranadive. Divac has been frustrated by internal complaints and used the forum to demand respect, Amick adds.
Thunder shooting guard Andre Roberson remains sidelined indefinitely, coach Billy Donovan told Maddie Lee of The Oklahoman and other media members. “He’s worked hard, he’s doing all he needs to do but he’s still in the rehab process.” Roberson suffered a season-ending left knee injury last January and suffered a setback in late November when an MRI revealed an avulsion fracture in the knee.

Poll: Rockets’ Playoff Chances

December 9th, 2018 at 9:30pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

In what has seemingly been a weekly topic among NBA fans and analysts, the Rockets‘ slow start has only gotten worse, as they have now lost three straight games for the third time this season and sit at 11-14, good for 14th in the Western Conference.

What many brushed off as a simple slump due to injuries and cold shooting has continued throughout the season, despite the team boasting the healthiest rotation in recent games as Chris Paul, Gerald Green and Nene have all returned from injuries.

While the Rockets’ offense has struggled from time to time (they rank ninth in the league), it is the defense that has continued to fail them, as they have fallen all the way down to 25th on that end of the floor. Additionally, the team’s lack of quality depth has been exposed as a result of their top players not leading the way as expected.

Chris Paul is in the midst of the worst season of his career while Eric Gordon has been nowhere near the levels from previous seasons. Meanwhile, James Harden and Clint Capela are putting up eye-opening offensive numbers but aren’t playing the level of defense they were at last season. Combine all of those factors together and you get the perfect recipe for this disastrous season for the Rockets.

Barring a trade, there is no solution on the way, especially considering the amount of problems that need solving. Sure, the season is just over one-quarter of the way through, but the Rockets’ recent play doesn’t inspire confidence in their abilities moving forward.

At the moment, the Rockets are just 2 1/2 games out of the eighth seed. That begs the question, do you think the Rockets will make the playoffs? Vote in the poll below and share your thoughts in the comments section!

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.

Texas Notes: Butler, Capela, Walker, Doncic

October 7th, 2018 at 1:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Rockets haven’t given up hope on trading for Jimmy Butler, but they’re planning for the season with their current roster, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic. Houston has been among the most persistent suitors for Butler, but hasn’t come close to meeting the Timberwolves’ asking price, which reportedly remains very high.

The Rockets’ front office is skeptical that Minnesota is serious about dealing away Butler, Amick adds. There is a belief that Wolves coach/executive Tom Thibodeau still hopes Butler can be convinced to stay despite his public trade request and the ongoing tension in the locker room. This comes on the heels of a similar report out of Los Angeles that the Clippers have tried to make a deal and objections from Miami about Minnesota’s asking price.

There’s more NBA news from the Lone Star State:

His teammates are now calling him “Swiss Bank,” but Rockets center Clint Capela insists he won’t be changed by the five-year, $80MM contract he signed this summer, relays Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. A restricted free agent, Capela was hoping to receive a maximum or near-max offer sheet. Although that never came and negotiations dragged on for nearly a month, he wound up with a sizable deal to stay in Houston. “The money is not weighing him down, I can tell you that,” coach Mike D’Antoni said. “He’s been great. I think he looks about how he looked halfway through the year.”
The torn meniscus that is expected to keep Spurs rookie Lonnie Walker out for six to eight weeks is the second one of his career, notes Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express News. He suffered the same injury last July before his freshman season at Miami and was ready for the opening game in November. Walker will have knee surgery Monday and a more exact timetable will be set for his return.
Mavericks rookie Luka Doncic has drawn rave reviews during the preseason, but he needs to cut down on turnovers, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Doncic has given the ball up eight times in 60 minutes of action, with four of those coming on traveling calls. “The behind the back [passes] and all that is good when it goes well,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “He threw one of them to somebody over in the second row one time. We’ve got to correct that. He’s adapting to the different ways they call traveling in the NBA. In Europe, they had a different interpretation of it.”

Western Notes: Deng, Hill, Mavs, Capela

September 4th, 2018 at 10:47pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Lakers and Luol Deng agreed to a buyout earlier this week, which will allow Los Angeles the ability to offer a top free agent a max contract next offseason. Adrian Wojnarowski reports (via Twitter) that the final figure on what Deng agreed to give up in the agreement came out to $7.3MM, slightly less than what was previously reported.

The Lakers are projected to have approximately $38MM in cap space next offseason, enough to be a major player in the market. While we wait to see if the team makes any other moves, let’s check out some notes from their rivals in the Western Conference:

The Suns are not interested in George Hill, Ashish Mathur of Amico Hoops reports. Phoenix traded away Brandon Knight over the weekend and has made inquiries on a few veteran options.
The Mavericks lost Doug McDermott in free agency, but Ryan Broekhoff, who signed a multiyear, minimum-salary deal with Dallas, may be a suitable replacement for the former first-round pick, Eddie Sefko of Sports Day writes. The Mavericks need all the shooters they can get, Sefko adds, so Broekhoff may find himself getting some playing time as the season goes along.
The Rockets and Clint Capela took some time to arrive at their five-year, $80MM+ deal but many of the team’s prominent members never doubted that the big man would return, as they tell Kelly Iko of The Athletic. “Oh, we’re not worried about stuff like that,” head coach Mike D’Antoni said of Capela possible slipping away. When James Harden was asked if he was concerned about Capela leaving, he replied “Nah.”

Southwest Notes: Capela, Anderson, Harden, Mejri

August 14th, 2018 at 7:34pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Clint Capela‘s five-year contract with the Rockets includes $1.5MM in yearly incentives that he’s likely to reach and another $500K in yearly incentives he’s unlikely to attain, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports.

As previously noted, Capela’s $90MM is technically guaranteed for $80MM with $10MM in incentives. He’ll receive $1MM annually if he plays 2,000 minutes or if the Rockets make the Western Conference Finals. He also has a $500K annual incentive for reaching 2,000 minutes played and a defensive rebound percent greater than 30 percent. Pincus considers those incentives well within reach. As a point of reference, Capela logged 2,034 minutes in 74 regular-season games last season with a defensive rebounding percentage of 30.8.

He also has a $500K annual incentive for taking at least 150 free throws and making 65% or more, which Pincus considers unlikely. Capela shot a career-high 56% from the line last season.

If he reaches the likely incentives, the cap hits on Capela’s contract will be $15.3MM, $16.4MM, $17.5MM, $18.6MM and $19.7MM (Twitter links).

We have more from around the Southwest Division:

The Grizzlies lost some scoring punch with the departure of Tyreke Evans but they’ll gain two-way versatility and playmaking efficiency from Kyle Anderson, according to Grizzlies website reporter Michael Wallace. Anderson will start at small forward but he can help Memphis at as many as four positions, Wallace continues. Anderson ranked sixth among qualifying NBA players in defensive rating last season, Wallace adds. Anderson was acquired in free agency when the Spurs declined to match a four-year, $37.2MM offer sheet.
Rockets star and league MVP James Harden is under investigation by Scottdale, Ariz. police over a nightclub incident, BrieAnna J Frank of the Arizona Republic reports. According to a TMZ report that Frank relayed, a woman was recording a scuffle involving someone in Harden’s entourage. Harden then alleged grabbed the woman’s phone and threw it onto a roof so she couldn’t sell the video footage.
Salah Mejri is once again looking at defensive-oriented reserve role with the Mavericks, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News writes. The 32-year-old Mejri will back up DeAndre Jordan, though Dirk Nowitzki will also cut into Mejri’s minutes when he gets shifted to center. Mejri signed a one-year veteran’s minimum contract earlier this month.