The Houston Rockets are reportedly engaged in talks with the Atlanta Hawks and several other Eastern Conference teams on a trade centered around Clint Capela, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Moreover, per Woj, a multi-team trade is very much a possibility.
As trade deadline looms on Thursday, Houston is engaged with several Eastern Conference teams — including Atlanta — on C Clint Capela, league sources tell ESPN. There are a few multi-team trade scenarios in play.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 3, 2020
This is not much of a surprise from Atlanta's perspective. The Haws were reportedly in talks with the Detroit Pistons regarding franchise center Andre Drummond at the beginning of January, though the talks appear to have fizzled out with Drummond's impending player option looming large.
Capela, on the other hand, is in just the second year of a five-year, $80 million contract he signed in the summer of 2018. The 25-year-old is having another strong season, averaging 13.9 points, 13.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks through his first 38 appearances.
This is hardly the first time the Rockets have considered moving Capela. General manager Daryl Morey was actively looking for trade partners this summer, though the interest in trading the Swiss big man petered out after Morey was able to acquire Russell Westbrook from the Oklahoma City Thunder.
However, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported Capela is continuing to draw interest from opposing teams, and the Rockets might be able to attain quite the haul given his relatively friendly contract.
The question is: why would the Rockets move Capela?
Even if they are able to acquire a number of future assets, Capela is Houston's primary rim protector and one of the best rebounders in the league.
The Rockets would almost certainly demand a frontcourt player as part of any package involving Clint Capela, otherwise they risk seriously damaging their championship hopes this season.
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