The Atlanta Hawks had a very different outlook on basketball last season. For one thing, their defense changed for the better and this was largely due to the tremendous play of Clint Capela. The pivot bought a whole new level of play to that end of the court.
With the exception of the Philadelphia 76ers series, for which we can give him a leave pass, Capela was rarely outplayed for the entire season. He was able to be the voice on defense which helped his perimeter players stick closer to their opponents.
If a player was able to penetrate into the paint, they were then faced with the fourth-leading shot-blocker in the entire league last season. Capela was able to average 2.0 blocks per game for the entire season. He even managed to collect an incredibly rare triple-double where he had ten blocks.
The Atlanta Hawks can get more out of Clint Capela
Capela is by no means a complete player. Some have even asked if the Hawks are capable of winning it all with him in the middle. He is certainly a throwback center in a league that values a big man with range more than a traditional big man like Capela.
Still, there are a number of benefits to having a player like Capela. On top of the blocks and the good team defense, Capela led the league in rebounding with 14.3 per game. He also was very good on the offensive end, finishing at the rim with great authority, usually on the end of a tremendous pass from Trae Young.
Now, let’s take a look at three goals for Clint Capela in the 2021-22 season.
Atlanta Hawks season goal for Clint Capela No. 1) Lead the league in blocks per game.
As mentioned earlier, Capela was good enough to finish fourth in the league with 2.0 blocks per game. The thing is, he was third in the league for most of the season. He defended the paint like he had paid for it and the numbers followed.
Capela was very good when he was being challenged head-on. He altered so many shots a game and this benefitted the Hawks no end. He was also incredibly good on help defense, blocking many shots from the weak side as his teammates directed their opponents to the right areas.
As the Hawks’ defensive chemistry improves in the second season that they play together, Capela will have even more chances to block shots. He is going to have the defensive prowess of De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish to help him out this season.
If Capela can in fact lead the league in blocks next season then this will help the Hawks hopefully climb up the standing for that crucial home-court advantage. As shown by the 2020-21 season, games can be decided by a single shot and if Capela can swing a couple in their favor with his blocked shots then this will be huge.
Atlanta Hawks season goal for Clint Capela No. 2) Develop some range on his shot.
Capela has made a living shooting the ball from within three feet of the hoop. He has taken 76.3 percent of his shots from this distance. There is a good reason for it, he has made 71.2 percent of these shots. A big reason for this is Capela is a tremendous alley-oop target.
He has made 1,015 dunks over his career which is 31.6 percent of all of his shots. This is a big reason that he has a career number of 62.6 percent from the field. While all of this sounds good, it does not do well for floor spacing.
It also means that when he is defended by an opposing big man who can defend the rim Capela becomes less effective. This in turn means that Young penetrating has less impact on the game. If Capela is not a threat then Young can be defended in the mid-range, stopping his floater from being as effective.
If Capela can develop an effective shot from seven feet out then he is able to draw his defender away from the hoop. This then causes the rest of the defense to react, meaning that there are more open shots for everyone.
Atlanta Hawks season goal for Clint Capela No. 2) Improve his free-throw shooting to 65 percent
More from Soaring Down South
- Start, Bench, Cut: Sorting through the Hawks’ power forward options
- Hawks’ Bogdan Bogdanovic reacts to earning FIBA World Cup championship bid
- When does training camp start for the Atlanta Hawks?
- Grade the trade: Hawks deal Trae Young to Clippers in shocking proposal
- Dejounte Murray rips NBA 2K after Atlanta Hawks ratings reveal
On top of his inability to shoot from beyond three feet with any consistency, Capela is also a very poor free-throw shooter. What is a little scary is that he has worked up to 57.3 percent from the line. This was the second-best number for his career, going at 63.6 percent from the line in his second last season with the Houston Rockets.
He has come a long way in his career from the line. He hit an abysmal 15.4 percent from the line on 1.9 attempts in his rookie season. Then, in his sophomore season, he hit 37.9 percent from the line. From then on he has never fallen below 50.0 percent for a full season but that is a pretty low benchmark.
The obvious issue for the Hawks is that opposing teams can foul Capela towards the end of games. By using the law of averages, Capela will miss critical points, costing the team games. As the Eastern Conference is becoming tight at the top, this cannot happen for the Hawks.
Obviously, he is not going to develop his shooting from the line to get to the same level as Young, Lou Williams, or Danilo Gallinari but getting to the point of hitting two out of every three attempts at the line means that he can be effective throughout the game.