Clint Capela Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Western Notes: Malone, Howard, Clippers

February 9th, 2015 at 3:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Former Kings coach Michael Malone made a second visit to Minnesota to speak with Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor after Flip Saunders invited Malone to observe the team for a while last month, as TNT’s David Aldridge reports amid his Morning Tip column for NBA.com. Aldridge speculates that Saunders, serving in a dual role as coach and president of basketball operations, is eyeing Malone as a potential replacement as coach for whenever Saunders decides to concentrate on his executive role. Malone is also a rumored candidate for the Magic’s head coaching job. Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

Dwight Howard says he was given a timetable of six to eight weeks for recovery from the right knee swelling that’s kept him out of action since January 23rd, according to Jenny Dial Creech of the Houston Chronicle. The Rockets announced this past Wednesday that he’d miss at least a month, though team doctor Walt Lowe says there isn’t a specific time frame for his return, other than that he’ll be back this season, Creech writes.
The Clippers are unlikely to make a 10-day signing before the All-Star break, as Dan Woike of the Orange County Register hears (Twitter link). The team has reportedly spoken with Sebastian Telfair about a potential deal.
The Rockets have recalled rookies Clint Capela and Nick Johnson from the D-League, the team announced (on Twitter). It was assignment No. 4 for Capela and the third D-League stint for Johnson, as our assignments/recalls log shows. Johnson is averaging 10.7 minutes per game in 17 NBA appearances, while Capela has seen only 18 total minutes with the big club.
Al-Farouq Aminu has given the Mavericks the best dollar-for-dollar production of any player on the roster, opines Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com, arguing that the minimum-salary signee has excelled doing many of the same duties Shawn Marion did last year.

Southwest Notes: Pelicans, Parsons, Randolph

January 29th, 2015 at 1:48pm CST by Chuck Myron

There’s a perception around the NBA that GM Dell Demps and coach Monty Williams are on “thin ice” in New Orleans, as Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders wrote this week, corroborating an earlier report from Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher that linked the team to former Pistons exec Joe Dumars. Still, the Pelicans are hanging around the playoff race, sitting in ninth place in the Western Conference and two and a half games out of the final postseason spot. There’s more on the Pelicans amid the latest from the Southwest Division:

Chandler Parsons doesn’t have a role that’s expansive as he envisioned when he signed with the Mavs for three years and $46.085MM this past summer, but he’s not complaining, as Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com details.
It would be “crazy” for the Mavs to make an offer to Rajon Rondo that even approaches the maximum salary, MacMahon opines in a roundtable piece with other ESPNDallas.com writers, adding that he’d hesitate to give the point guard more than $10MM a year.
John Reid of The Times-Picayune chronicles the ascent of Dante Cunningham from languishing in free agency two months ago to starter for the Pelicans today. Cunningham signed with New Orleans in early December.
Zach Randolph would stand to draw offers this summer for more than the two-year, $20MM extension he signed with the Grizzlies last year if he had played out his contract instead, as Geoff Calkins of The Commercial Appeal speculates in a subscription-only piece. Still, the power forward believes the extension was worth signing. “It definitely is, man,” he said. “It’s about sacrificing. I sacrificed. This is what it’s all about, sacrificing for your team, your teammates and your organization.”
The Rockets have assigned Clint Capela to the D-League, the team announced (on Twitter). It’s the fourth time that Houston has sent the No. 25 pick from the 2014 draft to its affiliate.

D-League Notes: Harris, Green, Capela

January 25th, 2015 at 3:50pm CST by Charlie Adams

A report earlier today indicated that the Pistons are mulling the prospect of signing D-League standout Lorenzo Brown. While we wait to see if Detroit makes a move to supplement its ailing backcourt, let’s round up the latest news pertaining to the D-League..

The Cavs recalled Joe Harris from the D-League this morning, the team announced. This was the rookie guard’s second stint with the Canton Charge this season, though he’s still yet actually log any minutes with Cleveland’s minor league club.
Erick Green‘s trip to the D-League has come to an end, as the Nuggets announced that the rookie guard has been recalled to the NBA. Green performed well with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, averaging 21 points per game across a pair of contests.
The Rockets recalled Clint Capela from the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the D-League, the team announced via Twitter. Capela, the 25th overall pick in last June’s draft, averaged 14.9 points and 8.7 boards across 18 games for Houston’s minor league affiliate.

D-League Notes: Capela, Ledo, Powell, Magic

December 27th, 2014 at 3:18pm CST by Charlie Adams

As we wait to see if D-League standout Brady Heslip gets signed by an NBA club before he accepts an offer from a team overseas, let’s round up the latest from the NBA’s official minor league:

The Rockets have sent Clint Capela to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the team announced on Twitter. The 25th overall pick from last June’s draft hasn’t been able to get much burn in Houston’s crowded frontcourt, tallying just 12 minutes of action this season, so he’ll have a better shot to demonstrate his skills in the D-League.
Ricky Ledo and Dwight Powell have been assigned to the Texas Legends, the Mavs announced. The pair will have a chance to see more time in the D-League than they otherwise would with the title hopeful group of veterans in Dallas.
Magic coach Jacque Vaughn made it clear that Orlando values the one-to-one affiliation that the team has with the Erie BayHawks, its D-League club, as John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com details. The Magic assigned Devyn Marble to the D-League yesterday in order to get him some playing time while recovering from an injury.

Rockets Put Five On Trade Block

December 24th, 2014 at 10:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Rockets are trying to make deals involving five players in order to create a roster spot for Josh Smith, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The available players are Isaiah Canaan, Joey Dorsey, Tarik Black, Nick Johnson and Clint Capela.

Smith, who was released Monday by the Pistons, cleared waivers Wednesday afternoon and announced publicly that he plans to sign with Houston for the team’s $2.077MM biannual exception. However, the Rockets have the maximum 15 players under contract and cannot make Smith a formal offer until an opening is created. Stein said the Rockets are confident they can work out a deal, and would prefer a trade to waiving one of the players.

Black is the only one of the five without a fully guaranteed contract, agreeing to a two-year, partially guaranteed deal in August. Canaan makes $816K this year and a non-guaranteed $947K next season. Dorsey will be paid more than $948K this season and more than $1MM next year. Capela and Johnson are both rookies. Capela, a first-round draft pick, makes $1.189MM this year and is under team control through 2018/19. Johnson, a second-rounder, earns a little over $500K and is under team control through 2017/18.

Rockets Notes: Jones, Smith, Capela

December 24th, 2014 at 7:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Rockets apparently added one power forward to their lineup Wednesday after Josh Smith cleared waivers, and Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle reports that another one may be on the way. “Terrence Jones has been able to do some stuff that honestly he hasn’t been able to do since that thing happened,” said coach Kevin McHale, referring to the nerve problem in Jones’ knee that has kept him out of the lineup since November 3rd. “I was excited just to see Terrence with a smile on his face. He ran on the treadmill. He ran on the floor. He’s been jumping a little bit. I don’t know when – it’s not imminent – that’s just like making a trade for a really quality player and not giving anything up.”

There’s more from an eventful day in H-Town:

Smith, who committed to joining the Rockets Wednesday afternoon, told Amin Elhassan of ESPN.com that he plans to help his new team in several ways. “I think I can add to their toughness,” Smith said. “I think I can add to their versatility at the four position, being able to pass the basketball and score the ball down low. Just add another basketball IQ, which will help when we make it to the postseason.” Smith is also looking forward to playing alongside James Harden, whom he called “the best two-guard in the game right now.”
Smith is a perfect fit in Houston, opines Avery Stone of USA Today. Stone likes the match because of Smith’s elite defensive skills, his ability to finish in transition and the Rockets’ lack of a proven NBA power forward.
Rookie center Clint Capela was recalled Wednesday from the team’s Rio Grande Valley affiliate in the D-League, according to a tweet by Feigen. Capela was sent there December 17th after getting little playing time in his latest two-week stint with the Rockets despite injuries to Jones, Dwight Howard and Kostas Papanikolaou.
The Rockets were among the teams that pursued James Johnson last summer before he landed in Toronto, according to Shams Charania of Real GM. The Grizzlies and Jazz also requested meetings with the free agent forward, who signed a two-year deal with the Raptors worth $2.5MM per season. Houston also had interest last season before he left the D-League and signed with Memphis.

Western Notes: Crawford, Moreland, Brewer

December 16th, 2014 at 7:41pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Clippers guard Jamal Crawford is being mentioned quite a bit in exploratory trade talks, Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio reports (Twitter link). According to Amico, the Kings, Nuggets, and Thunder may take a run at acquiring the veteran guard, though no serious discussions are talking place just yet. In 23 appearances this season, Crawford is averaging 16.0 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 26.7 minutes per game.

Here’s the latest out of the West:

The Kings have once again recalled Eric Moreland from the Reno Bighorns, their D-League affiliate, the team has announced. This was Moreland’s fifth sojourn of the season to Reno, and in seven appearances for the Bighorns he has averaged 13.7 points and 1.4 assists per contest.
For the second time this season the Rockets have assigned Clint Capela to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston’s D-League affiliate, the team announced. The 6’10” rookie has made four appearances for the Rockets this season, recording a total of six rebounds, one assist, a steal and a block in 12 total minutes of playing time. In his first stint with the Vipers, Capela played in six games averaging 9.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.2 blocks in 14.1 minutes per contest.
The Rockets‘ coaching staff is enamored with Corey Brewer and are still pursing a trade with the Wolves for the swingman, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities tweets. No deal is imminent, Wolfson adds.
Kevin Durant refuted the notion that players around the league don’t want to play with Kobe Bryant, Sam Amick of USA Today writes. When asked if this perception is why the Lakers have been unable to make a splash in in free agency lately, Durant said, “Excuse my language, but that’s [expletive]. I want to play with a winner every single night, especially somebody who wants to win that bad, who works that hard, who demands a lot, who raises up your level. I’d want to play with a guy like that every day. His style may make people uncomfortable, how he acts and just how he approaches the game, but I love that type of stuff. I think [the accusation] is BS.”

Southwest Notes: Leonard, Gasol, Rockets

December 2nd, 2014 at 10:00am CST by Chuck Myron

Kawhi Leonard will hit restricted free agency in the summer, but Gregg Popovich isn’t moving away from his plan to make the small forward the focal point for the Spurs, as he explains to Michael Lee of The Washington Post.

“We’re trying to loosen up a bit and give him more of a green light,” Popovich said. “He’s getting more license. When you’re a young kid, you’re going to defer to Timmy [Duncan] and Manu [Ginobili] and [Tony Parker]. Now it’s like, ‘To heck with those guys. The Big Three, they’re older than dirt. To [expletive] with them. You’re the Big One. You’ve got to go do your deal.’ So, we’re trying to get him to be more demonstrative in that regard.”

Popovich was speaking tongue in cheek about Duncan, Ginobili and Parker, but it’s not hard to see that he continues to view the 23-year-old Leonard as a building block. Here’s more on Leonard amid the latest from the Southwest Division:

Leonard was non-committal when Lee asked about his upcoming free agency, though it’s the Spurs who can ultimately decide if he returns, since they can match all offers. “I feel like they like me here and I’m going to come back, but we’ll see,” Leonard said, as Lee notes in the same piece. “We’re going to see this summer.”
Zach Randolph expressed confidence during an ESPN appearance Monday that Marc Gasol will re-sign with the Grizzlies, notes Frank Isola of the New York Daily News (Twitter links), but Randolph admits to USA Today’s Sam Amick that sometimes he worries that Gasol will leave. In any case, Randolph said to Amick that he talks to Gasol a bit about the summer ahead, presumably in an effort to get him to stay.
The summer front office upheaval in Memphis that nearly saw coach Dave Joerger leave for the Wolves job didn’t prompt worry for Gasol, Amick reports in the same piece. “I was in contact with everybody [during that time],” Gasol said. “I was in contact with [owner] Robert [Pera], and I was in contact with Coach, and they told me that everything was going to be fine, and I believed them. There was no reason for me not to believe them.”
The Rockets have recalled Clint Capela from the D-League, the team announced. This year’s 25th overall pick put up 9.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and an eye-popping 3.2 blocks in just 14.1 minutes per game across six contests for the D-League Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

Southwest Rumors: Felton, Powell, Capela, Davis

November 10th, 2014 at 10:02pm CST by Charlie Adams

It’s possible the Mavs don’t activate the injured Raymond Felton prior to the Dallas’ matchup versus the Kings tomorrow, reveals Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram. Once activated, Felton can begin serving the four-game suspension he was slapped with this summer after pleading guilty to a gun charge. While we wait for the 30-year-old to get healthy enough to begin serving his punishment, let’s have a look at the latest from around the Southwest..

Josh Powell is committed to his role as player development coach for the Rockets and has turned down multiple offers to play overseas, as Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports passes along amid his weekly power rankings. Powell appeared in a single game for Houston last year after failing to secure an NBA contract during the previous two seasons.
The Rockets have assigned Clint Capela to their D-League affiliate, the team announced. Capela, the 25th overall pick in the 2014 draft, will join the Rio Grande Valley Vipers after appearing briefly in just one of Houston’s first six contests.
Ed Davis rejected a long-term rookie scale extension offer from the Grizzlies last October that would have paid him $5MM to $6MM annually, reports Ronald Tillery of the Commerical Appeal in a subscription only piece. The big man found himself in a difficult situation playing for Memphis last year, as he saw few minutes in a stacked frontcourt. Tillery observes that Davis doesn’t hold any ill will against his former team, but the Commercial Appeal scribe’s perceived lack of bitterness from Davis runs in contrast to the words that the 22-year-old had about the Grizzlies, which we passed along earlier tonight.

And-Ones: Cavs, Rockets, Mavs, D-League

October 18th, 2014 at 10:32pm CST by Cray Allred

Stephen Holt is heading to the Cavs‘ D-League affiliate, tweets David Pick of Eurobasket.com. This would presumably mean that Cleveland will waive Holt and exercise their rights to him in the D-League. With Holt’s non-guaranteed contract out of the way, Cleveland’s remaining five camp invites on non- or partially guaranteed contracts would have a better shot at one of the team’s three open roster spots–outside of Anderson Varejao‘s lock to make the team on his partially guaranteed deal–for the regular season. Here’s more from around the league:

Rockets coach Kevin McHale indicated to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle that Houston’s first- and second-round draft picks, Clint Capela and Nick Johnson, respectively, will both spend significant time with the team’s D-League squad.
While the Mavericks have high expectations for this season, coach Rick Carlisle will have the challenge of meshing multiple new pieces for the second consecutive year. Carlisle tells Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News that high turnover for veteran players is a league-wide trend. “I view it as one of the realities of our business right now. Teams are going to try to keep their young core players together,” Carlisle said. “There are going to be some financial and basketball decisions that are going to be unavoidable.”
Keegan LaBlance has entered his name into the 2014 NBA D-League Draft, according to Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside. The point guard will hope to be selected on the November 1 draft and begin a journey toward an NBA career.
Chadrack Lufile is also hoping to be selected in the D-League draft, telling Gino Pilato of DLeagueDigest.com that he turned down offers to play overseas this summer. “A large reason why I wanted to stay here is actually because my mom got really sick. I want to stay nearby,” said Lufile. “My ultimate goal is to play in the NBA, and it doesn’t matter how I get there, but I feel like the D-League is a great way for me to do so.”