When it comes to deal-making, you snooze and you lose.
That is one way to frame the Hawks’ not completing a trade for starting center Clint Capela despite rumored interest in the former rebounding champion.
“Executives across the league exploring the center market believe Young’s long-time pick-and-roll partner, Clint Capela, could be a trade candidate in the final year of his contract worth $22.27 million, HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto wrote on December 2.
“With rising star Jalen Johnson signed to a five-year, $150 million extension, newly acquired Dyson Daniels thriving as a Defensive Player of the Year and All-Defensive Team candidate, No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher, and Onyeka Okongwu in line for an expanded role if Capela is traded or not retained this summer, Atlanta can focus on a youth movement and rebuild.”
Capela is having a great season for the Hawks but you might not know if from the box score.
The 11th-year veteran is averaging 10.7 points and 8.8 rebounds this season, both of which are steps back from his 2023-24 numbers.
Capela’s scoring has declined in each over this season and last, and his rebounding numbers have dropped for the fifth consecutive season. However, the advanced metrics show Capela has been vital for the Hawks.
Capela has the second-best on-off differential on the team, per Cleaning The Glass.
Scotto also included possibly trading Trae Young to embark on that rebuild. But the Hawks' options are limited. They do not own their first-round pick through 2028, so tanking is out of the question.
On the other side of that equation is Okongwu. He is averaging a career-high 11.0 points and 1.7 assists this season. He has been even better over the last three games. Okongwu also falls on the lower end of the Hawks' on-off differentials.
Okongwu, the No. 6 overall pick of the 2020 NBA Draft, is already undersized at center.
But he has also not positively impacted the team on the floor since 2022-23 when he had a plus-1.9 differential. Okongwu had a minus-0.5 mark in 2023-24 and is at minus-5.8 this season.
Still, Capela in an unrestricted free agent after the season, is already 30 years old, and has never added really anything offensively outside of the restricted area. Okongwu is in Year 1 of a four-year, $61.9 million pact, so he is the future at the position for the Hawks.
The question is whether or not they truly view him as a starter given Capela is still here.
Hawks’ Clint Capela has drawn trade interest
“Teams such as the Knicks, Grizzlies, and Pelicans did their due diligence on Capela this offseason before going in other directions, with New York re-signing Precious Achiuwa and trading for Karl-Anthony Towns, Memphis drafting Zach Edey, and New Orleans drafting Yves Missi,” Scotto wrote.
Soaring Down South noted the talks between the Hawks and Knicks.
“I know the Knicks talked to Atlanta this offseason about a deal involving Capela,” SportsNet New York’s Ian Begley wrote on September 13.
SDS also touched on the Pelicans’ interest in Capela as part of the Dejounte Murray trade. But there was also word that the Hawks did not want to part with the pivot much in the same way they did not want to take back Brandon Ingram.
“As it turned out, Atlanta didn’t have much interest in giving Ingram his next contract or moving either of its top two centers (Clint Capela and Onyeka Okongwu), according to league sources,” The Athletic’s Will Guillory wrote on July 8 (subscription required).
Capela was also a popular potential trade target for the Grizzlies before the draft.
“The Grizzlies should be back in the playoffs next season … although they'll need a new starting center after dealing injured big man Steven Adams to the Houston Rockets,” Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz on February 29. “Capela, 29, is a perfect fit as a rebounder and defender, someone who can feed off pick-and-rolls.”
Obviously, none of those deals came to fruition. The Grizzlies and Knicks have both gotten off to strong starts while the Pelicans, who will visit the Hawks on Monday, are collapsing.
Still, moving Capela could be a key step toward the Hawks’ best path forward.