Atlanta Hawks $90M star on WC playoff team’s radar: report
The Atlanta Hawks could have a taker for center Clint Capela this summer. That is somewhat counterintuitive to what team president, Travis Schlenk, has been preaching recently. But the gap between not trading anyone and an overhaul is fairly wide.
There is a lot of wiggle room in which Schlenk can operate.
Schlenk’s Hawks went from an Eastern Conference Finals berth in 2021 to the eight-seed and a first-round out this past season.
Capela would be a significant change on multiple levels. But even moving off of his contract is not necessarily the precursor to a total revamping of this team. And Capela has seen the public stance on him change as well.
The Atlanta Hawks potentially trading Clint Capela to the Timberwolves would be quite the turn of events
It was just at this past season’s trade deadline that word came out that everyone but Capela and Trae Young were available. Young is the face of the franchise, a no-brainer to make off-limits. Capela’s inclusion was less clear, though his impact certainly was obvious. He also just signed a two-year, $63 million extension last offseason.
That meant he could not be moved until this offseason, perhaps leading to the public declaration of his availability or lack thereof.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania reports interest in Capela, among other veteran centers, by the Minnesota Timberwolves who finished seventh in the Western Conference. They have been searching for a rebounding and defensive help to pair with Karl-Anthony Towns.
Capela led the NBA with 14.3 boards per contest a season ago.
He wouldn’t be called upon to score much with Towns and Anthony Edwards carrying the load.
A Capela for Malik Beasley works financially, per Spotrac’s Roster Manager. But the Hawks could and should ask for more.
That would open up a starting spot for Onyeka Okongwu while also adding more perimeter shooting. Beasley is a career 38.6% three-point shooter.
The Hawks could also package Capela with wing Kevin Huerter for guard and former All-Star, D’Angelo Russell, whom the Timberwolves are rumored to be shopping.
This outcome adds a second playmaker and bonafide scorer in Russell at the added expense of Huerter who signed a four-year $65 million extension last summer. He averaged 12.1 points while knocking down a career-high 38.9% of his triples during the regular season.
Capela signed a two-year, $46 million extension a couple of weeks later. He averaged 11.1 points and 11.9 boards this season.
Both players dealt with injuries and inconsistency.
Russell averaged 18.1 points per game. He shot 34.0% from beyond the arc this year. But he shot 38.7% from deep in 2021. He also brings the ability to create for himself and others that the Hawks currently lack outside of Young who led the NBA in total assists last season.
The Hawks would miss Capela’s defense.
They were 8.6 points worse defensively when he sat in 2021, per Cleaning the Glass. But they were just 0.1 points worse last season.
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Stein notes Capela’s relationship with Young among the reasons the former’s availability changing is notable. That would suggest, that despite Schlenk’s assertion that no massive overhaul was coming, pretty substantial changes still loom.