Clint Capela just proved the Hawks are better off without KAT

It was dominance from three virtually from start to finish as the Atlanta Hawks rained a franchise-record 25 triples. Their 49 attempts from deep are tied for the fifth-most in franchise history. Most importantly it brought their record to 13-12 as they notched their fourth straight road win.

There were a lot of things to take away from this game, including the threes.

But specifically, the play of Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Danilo Gallinari, who dropped 20-plus points each, the latter off of the bench.

The biggest takeaway has deeper implications on the future of this roster and its construction which comes under scrutiny following losses. Namely, Clint Capela received a bunch of criticism, some warranted and some not, for his offense.

Clint Capela is a much better fit for these Atlanta Hawks than KAT would be

He can seemingly be ineffective when matched against the top bigs in the league. as rarely as those matchups might occur prior to the postseason. But this game, in particular, Capela showed that the Hawks may be better off not going after Karl-Anthony Towns in pursuit of another superstar.

That may be odd considering Towns is one of the most talented players in the game.

Except Monday’s win isn’t the only piece of evidence we have that would suggest the same; Towns isn’t the piece to take the Hawks to the next level.

No, a player who scored 31 points, grabbed 16 rebounds, and had six assists against them isn’t worth the squeeze for the Hawks as currently constructed.  Not even though he shot 4-of-6 from deep.

He also recorded just one block as often the tallest player on the floor.

That is somewhat of a byproduct of the Hawks shot selection, but they shot 7-of-12 in the restricted area as well. Outside of John Collins who shot 1-of-4 against Towns, the Hawks shot 7-of-15 when he guarded them. Capela, a non-three-point shooter, was 2-of-3 for six of his nine points on Towns and hauled in 16 boards of his own.

The Hawks man in the middle held Towns to 3-of-8 shooting.

It’s hard to envision Towns getting the Hawks over the hump if he can’t handle Capela down low in the paint.

Now, the former Kentucky Wildcat does own a 6-5 record against the Hawks. But he did most of that early in career, and pre-Capela, going 4-0 to start. He missed the two meetings last season which the Hawks won, but split the year before and was winless following his early edge.

Towns also averages 25.5 points per game against the Hawks, more than he does against all but five other teams.

Still, he doesn’t seem to have what the Hawks need to make it worth parting with Capela, or Collins for that matter. The latter has been playing solid defense all season as he’s taken his game to new heights, no pun intended.

The rumors and mock trades linking Towns and the Hawks won’t go away. Though the Timberwolves are still in the playoff race in the West, a scenario that would likely kill rumors for some time. When they do come back, just remember two things: Towns is 2-6 against Joel Embiid’s Philadelphia 76ers and 3-6 against Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Milwaukee Bucks.

Capela helped the Hawks knock Philly out of the postseason last year and would love nothing more than another crack at the Bucks with both teams healthy after taking two games in the Eastern Conference Finals. Definitive? No. But very compelling.