Atlanta Hawks 2023-24 Player Review: Clint Capela

Clint Capela has been a lightning rod for criticism regarding the Hawks’ team play over the past three seasons – especially last season. But was this fan anger really justified?

On the surface, Capela’s stat line for 2023-24 reveals his usual draw: 11.5 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.5 blocks per game in 2023-24. But Capela’s shooting efficiency dipped last season, dropping from 65% to 57% from the field between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons.

There was a noticeable increase in his mobility and jump shots late in the season – a development that saw him return to his usual good rim protection numbers. But with two small guards, a rotating team of forwards around him and his own injuries, the team effect was all the same: an Atlanta Hawks defense that just wasn’t good enough.

For a guy with such a defined role on both ends of the court, let’s break this player review down into the most obvious delineation in basketball.

Offense

Capela’s offensive role has been very clear since the day he entered the NBA: hard screen, drive to the basket and hit the offensive glass. But finishing issues at the rim reared their head in 2023-24.

His offensive rebounding has been more productive than ever, but it seems common to dismiss that productivity by claiming that his frequent misses at the rim improve his numbers. On putbacks (by definition an offensive rebound and a close shot attempt), Capela shot a horrible 48% last season – again, these shots are usually right at the rim.

This is clearly a rather unfortunate brand.

But it is worth mentioning that Capela remains one of, if not THE, best offensive rebounder in the league with a gaudy 18.7% offensive rebound rate. So, he generates tons of offensive rebounds that no one else in the league could do in these situations – more than four extra possessions per 100 times. any of them another qualified player in the NBA.

For every blown tip-in, there were numerous examples of Capela getting rebounds in a crowd and (eventually) sending it home.

But there is also the flip side where Capela cannot place the ball on smaller defenders.

As a roll man in the pick-and-roll, the numbers are much rosier: 59% roll results in those situations. And it remains a pick-and-roll heavy offense.

Sure, Capela offers vertical spacing above the rim, but no horizontal spacing on the basketball court. The Swiss big shot just 2% of his shots outside of 10 feet last season, which pretty much forces the Hawks to deploy 4-out lineups around him.

While Saddiq Bey struggled to shoot corner threes, like John Collins the previous season, the cramped offense tended to get stuck in the mud against better competition. Although Young’s injury was also a significant factor, the Hawks failed to register a top-10 offense for the first time since 2019-20.

Ultimately, it may be time to look for a “more expandable” 5 (if possible, those are hard to come by) if the Hawks want to encourage Jalen Johnson’s continued growth as a franchise forward.

Defense

Capela has struggled with a long list of core and lower body injuries in 2023-24. You name it, knee, Achilles, calf, adductor, they all tormented the big at some point last season. While the Hawks finished 27th in defensive rating last season, his individual play on that side of the ball was as steady as ever in my eyes once he regained his footing throughout the season.

When he was on the court, he had an absolutely positive influence on the numbers on defense at the rim. Capela had the best goals defended percentage and highest minutes differential of any high-minute Hawk last season – far surpassing the next two players, Jalen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu.

Put simply, Capela’s defense at the rim has caused his opponents to shoot 59 percent at the rim, five percentage points lower than they usually shoot at point-blank range. Examples of videos to follow:

Head coach Quin Snyder had his big men defending screens at a much higher level on the field than in previous years, which placed an emphasis on helping defenders step up and hold position momentarily . The results of this defense (mainly due to lack of size/length elsewhere) were largely very poor, and Capela – classically a big drop – took some time to adjust to everything that was asked of him there- down.

The big man was a little less effective on the defensive glass than on the offensive glass, but his rebounding there was just as important, with the Hawks having to use smaller players at the 4 when Jalen Johnson was injured.

With Capela’s future with the franchise perhaps uncertain and the possible added wrinkles of a new defensive system, now may be the time to pivot and aim to pair a more mobile big with more size at the positions help.

Conclusion

Overall, Clint Capela has been a very positive contributor – despite leaving points at the rim offensively. He finished the season with +3.1 points per 100 possessions while playing major minutes for a team that had a total of -2.2 points per 100 possessions. That 5.3 net rating change just shows the value of rebounding and the rim protection it provides, even in a supposed down season.

During exit interviews, Capela repeatedly spoke about the lack of collective focus on defense and highlighted periods of the season where that focus was lost. “We haven’t really been able to be consistent defensively (as a team),” he said. “Our goal was definitely to be better than the year before. We weren’t.

It’s clear that Capela is really proud of the team’s defense, and he has been disappointed with the team’s performance on that side of the ball in 2023-24. “When I look at teams like Minnesota or the top three teams in the NBA, they are able to hold teams to less than 100 points,” he continued. “That’s what I want to do. This is what I want for my team. It can’t be just one player. This must be a common goal. We all need to have this mindset and goal. That we want to keep teams under 100 points, which will give us a better chance of winning the game.

There’s more than one elephant in the room: The Hawks own the number one pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, Clint Capela is 30 years old with a long injury list and his contract expires in 2024-25. With this pick, the Hawks could go in a different direction at center, and his expiring contract makes him very mobile around the league should the Hawks have confidence in Onyeka Okongwu for the future.

But it’s clear that Capela still brings great defensive value to this team, in addition to being Trae Young’s preferred pick-and-roll partner. Of course, there are also questions regarding Young’s long-term future here, but the Hawks will have to weigh Capela’s age, contract and health in any trade discussions this offseason if they’re looking to make a big change to the central position.