Rockets sign familiar face Clint Capela to three-year, $21.5 million deal

A surprising return for Capela.

Happy Free Agency! The most chaotic time of the NBA offseason is now underway, and Rafael Stone wasted no time making acquisitions as Shams Charania reported that the Houston Rockets had signed Capela to a three-year, $21.5 million contract.

Capela played with Houston from 2014–15 to the 2020 trade deadline after being selected by the Rockets in the first round of the 2014 NBA Draft. Capela was then traded to Atlanta along with Nene and Gerald Green as part of a multi-team trade that brought Robert Covington to Houston (this trade broke my heart). Since then, the Swiss big man has played with the Hawks.

Capela has averaged 12 points (61.7% FG), 10.5 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks in 26.2 minutes per game over the course of 11 NBA seasons. However, the 31-year-old Capela didn’t play as much in the 2024–25 season as he had in any of his eight prior seasons (8.9 points, 8.5 rebounds in 21.4 minutes). In his second decade in the league, Capela seems to be shifting into a more backup role. In Houston, he will undoubtedly play a backup role, trailing veteran backup Steven Adams and All-Star center Alperen Sengun on the depth chart.

Having said that, Sengun and Adams’ “double big” lineups from late last season should free up some playing time for a third center. Furthermore, given that Adams is also 31 years old, it’s feasible that he and Capela may share a workload during the 82-game regular season.

What is important to note is that the Rockets can’t afford to sign Capela outright. That combined with Capela’s entrance would seem to indicate that Jock Landale is leaving, as his guarantee date approaches. My guess is Houston negotiates some sign-and-trade using Cam Whitmore and waives Landale in order to stay under the second apron, but we will see, as there’s more free agency chaos to come all this week.