Age: 30 years old
Role: Backup center
Stats: 8.9 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.0 blocks, 0.6 steals on 56/0.0/53.6 shooting splits (21.4 minutes per game in 55 games played this season)
Back in 2025-26: TBD (Unrestricted free agent)
Clint Capela has been one of the most underrated Hawks players since arriving in Atlanta and one of the most consistent. He has been the anchor in the middle of the Hawks defense and has had to do a lot of heavy lifting on that end since arriving, but this season was a bit different for Capela.
The season began with Capela still starting for the Hawks, but there was a change in January. Capela was benched in favor of Onyeka Okongwu, something that has been speculated about since Okongwu was taken with the 6th pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. Capela was once again in trade rumors leading up to the trade deadline and while he was not dealt, he then had to deal with injuries that kept him out for a good portion of the season after the deadline.
In terms of numbers and stats, this was not a great year for Capela, who showed signs of aging for the first time since being a Hawks. He had his lowest PPG since 2015-2016, his second year in the NBA, his lowest blockers per game since his rookie season, his lowest RPG since joining the Hawks, his lowest field goal percentage since his rookie season, and his fewest minutes played per game since 2015-2016.
Per Cleaning the Glass, Capela finished the season with a 2.1% Block Percentage, the lowest in his career, as well as the lowest EFG% since his rookie season and the lowest two-point percentage (56.2%) since his rookie season. It was not just a defensive decline for Capela, but he was not finishing at the rim and shooting the ball as well as he had in the past. Capela had been an elite rim-running lob threat alongside Trae Young in the past, but he was not finishing well, as evidenced by his low effective field goal percentage and two-point percentage.
Capela was still a high-level rebounder though. He finished with a 13.9 fgOR% (91st percentile) and a 23 fgDR%. That was his top skill and wherever he lands, he can still provide that.
Even with a down season from Capela, the Hawks sorely missed his presence in the paint later in the season. Capela and Larry Nance Jr were both injured late in the season and the Hawks were left with only Okongwu at the center position and Atlanta had a serious size issue, with teams being able to use that against them time and again.
With Capela being an impending free agent this summer, should the Hawks consider bringing him back? It seems unlikely, but nothing is impossible. Right now, Okongwu is the only center under contract for the Hawks and at the right price, Capela could still bring leadership and solid minutes as a backup if healthy. The thing is, was his decline on defense and as a lob threat a sign of things to come or can he bounce back? There is always a right price for things, but it does not feel like Capela is going to be back for the Hawks.
Overall Grade: C-
Additional Links
2024-25 Atlanta Hawks Season Grades: Dominick Barlow
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