10 Unknown NBA Players To Keep An Eye On In 2016-17

Clint Capela, Houston Rockets

• Position: Center
• Age: 22 (05/18/1994)
• Height, Weight: 6’10” , 240 pounds
• Career Slash Line: .575/.000/.359
• Career Averages: 17.5 MPG, 6.4 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.1 BPG, 0.7 SPG, 0.6 APG

Clint Capela spent most of his rookie season in the D-League. A drastic improvement in the big man’s sophomore season was encouraging enough for the Rockets to believe they’d found a future franchise cornerstone.

The former first round pick in 2014 should make a seamless transition into Dwight Howard‘s starting center spot as he continues his development into one of the league’s best players around the rim.

https://youtu.be/Z2WI_wu1WL8

Capela’s offense came almost exclusively from inside the restricted area, and his defense was built on his ability to protect the rim.

The 23-year-old converted on 231 field goals last season and 212 were in the restricted area (via NBA.com). He wasn’t a statue on offense, though. Capela was efficient on the pick and roll too, as evidenced by his finishing in the 83rd percentile of points per possession (according to NBA.com) while moving towards the basket.

The Rockets were a better team in the 1,471 minutes that Capela was on the court last season. With more time, his impact on the game will be even stronger.