Clint Capela could be in danger of missing out on a $500,000 bonus incentive from the Houston Rockets, one he's likely of missing standing at a season-high 63.2 percent from the foul line.
As cap guru Albert Nahmad pointed out in a tweet, Capela's bonus structure would have him earn half a million if he connects on 65 percent of his foul shots, but he would need a superhuman effort to reach that mark.
According to Nahmad's calculations, Capela would need to make 84 free throws in a row to reach the mark in the team's final seven games to qualify for this bonus, something that bodes unlikely given his 3.9 foul attempts per game.
There is a reason why these are called “unlikely bonus structure” — they are designed to be tough to reach and only awarded to players that can comply with such a challenge.
Injury-riddled players often have an unlikely bonus structure based on games and minutes played in their contract, a good way for teams to keep from overpaying market value for a player that could be a risk.
In Jrue Holiday's case, his 67 games played were just enough to net him a small bonus before he was ruled out for the season after undergoing surgery.
Capela's free-throw bonus was meant to push him to become a reliable shooter at the line, something he's improved on every season since shooting a baffling 17.4 percent at the stripe in his rookie season.
The Rockets big man could have reached the 65 percent free throw mark if it wasn't for the 15 games he missed earlier this season due to a thumb injury. So unfortunate.
However, Capela does have two “likely” bonuses, one worth $1 million for reaching the Western Conference Finals and another for achieving a 30 percent rebounding rate (thanks Daryl Morey for this obscure gem) — both contingent on the big man playing 2,000 minutes on the season (per Spotrac), a mark he's already surpassed two games ago.
Capela signed a five-year, $90 million deal with the Rockets earlier this summer, but $10 million of those are made out of bonuses (likely and unlikely), which could save Houston some money down the road.
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