Capela has run of the floor these days
Threat of center as fast-break target opens offense for layups, 3-pointers
Clint Capela went up and snared one of those long James Harden passes the way wide receivers “high point” the ball, and took it to the rim for a smooth, lefthanded layup through an Alex Len foul.
He had finished similar buckets before, but this was especially slick, inspiring him to dance his way to the free-throw line.
“I think I nailed it,” Capela said not of the catch or the score, but of the bop that followed. “I just wanted to make sure it got on TV.”
“I’m happy,” Harden said, “I didn’t see it.”
But the Rockets love those baskets as much as any floater delivered after a crossover dribble or 3pointer nailed after a step back.
It’s not just that they marvel at Capela’s ability to run the floor or talent for catching those long passes and finishing, all in stride. Those are valuable. Capela averages 1.8 field goals in the first six seconds of the shot clock, making 66.2 percent of his attempts. But even beyond those quickstrike buckets, the Rockets
believe Capela’s speed opens up much more.
“That’s our offense,” Harden said. “Clint is a huge part of our offense. When he’s running like that, running down the floor, putting pressure on opposing bigs to be able to run with him, like I told him before, ‘you keep running like that, I’ll throw you the ball every single time, no matter if I turn it over or not. I appreciate you running.’ That makes our team go. He opens lanes up for not only myself but the rest of the guys.”
Capela’s ability to finish breaks, accounting for 3.5 transition points per game, is not a secret weapon, which is the point. The threat of Capela running the floor needs to be seen and felt to draw the defense to him, with opposing wings forced to leave the 3point line to pick up a center outrunning their bigs.
“Anybody that knows basketball knows if you have a big that runs the floor, it’s going to create 3s because people converge in; otherwise he gets a dunk,” guard Austin Rivers said. “Now, he does it every game. Some bigs don’t get it. Clint knows he’s creating offense. It’s huge for our team.”
Endurance question
That does require that Harden and Chris Paul are willing and able to throw those passes enough for Capela’s dashes to be threats to score, drawing the defense. That also requires Capela not wear out from a game spent sprinting.
“It translates into points for the whole team because when he runs, he either gets a hard pass from James or Chris — which not many people in the NBA can throw — or … him running sucks the defense in and gives us a lot of 3s,” coach Mike D’Antoni said. “He’s a key and having him run the whole game is important. That’s why he would fall off at the end of games. He would get tired (from) running, but now he can do it the whole game. Makes us better.”
Teams have long since stopping running fast breaks to set up dunks and layups. The old Celtics fast break, with wings crossing over under the basket, has been replaced by shooters fanning out, a change popularized in D’Antoni’s paceand-space revolution with the Suns. But when the Rockets talk about defense triggering offense, they often cite Capela’s speed beating bigs down the floor.
“When Clint runs in the middle, it opens it up for any shooter that runs to the corner,” guard Eric Gordon said. “When he does that, we get a chance to play fast and we’re really unpredictable.
“Of course, we’re going to shoot a lot of 3s, but it’s all about getting good looks all the time. When Clint is running and we’re getting the ball past half court with 20 seconds (left on the shot clock) more than likely you’re going to get a good shot.”
That starts with Capela running even when he does not have a chance to be rewarded and Harden being willing to trust that when he does send long passes, Capela will come down with them.
Harden’s ultimatum
“He better catch it,” Harden said. “Me and Clint have that relationship. I told Kenneth (Faried) the same thing. If our bigs are running the floor like that, if they’re putting pressure on the defense like that, I don’t mind getting a turnover or two trying to advance the ball to get them the ball just to let them know they have to keep doing it. I think that makes our team great and that’s our identity. As long as they keep running and keep putting that pressure on the defense, I’ll keep making those passes.”
But to Capela, the effort to outrun opposing big men, or anyone else he should speed past, is not a sacrifice. With endurance improved to match his speed, Capela will happily run the floor, regardless of what comes of it, even if it was the bucket on the break that got him to dance.
“First of all, I enjoy it whenever I get the ball and score,” Capela said. “I enjoy whenever I run, go back to the screen and get the lob. I enjoy when I run, guards have to guard me; creates mismatch with James. I love whenever guards have to guard me, gets guys wideopen corner 3s. Whenever I run like that, it just creates space for the team. You want to run when you see me run like that. I know that nobody is going to run like me like that.” jonathan.feigen@chron.com twitter.com/jonathan_feigen