Rockets hobble into Game 2
As center Dwight Howard tries to recover, Houston again must show its fortitude for tonight’s contest with the Warriors.
OAKLAND, Calif. — Before Tuesday’s opening game of the Western Conference finals, Rockets coach Kevin McHale was asked about his center, Dwight Howard.
What would Howard need to do to have a successful series against the Golden State Warriors?
In his answer, McHale, as he often does, dodged, dismissed and deflected before wrapping it up with a punch line.
“I mean, you don’t like all of a sudden be Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar) one series and then have him be Moses (Malone) the next series,” McHale said. “He’s going to be Dwight Howard. All right?”
Knowing darn well he and everybody else on the planet whose last name isn’t Howard would take Kareem or Moses in his prime over Dwight, McHale still felt good about his big man against Golden State’s Andrew Bogut.
That feeling lasted about six minutes into the contest, or until Josh Smith fell into Howard’s left knee, causing a sprain that could,
and probably should, keep Howard out of Thursday’s game.
While the Rockets believe they have a decisive edge inside with Howard — one of the few advantages they possess in the matchup against the high-powered Warriors — it would be smarter to sit Howard and hope he will be ready for Games 3 and 4 in Houston than play him at 75 percent.
The Warriors are not the kind of team against whom a hobbling big man can be effective.
The Rockets in the conference finals without a game-changing big man is like, well, no one knows what that is like.
The six previous times the Rockets advanced within four wins of the NBA Finals, they rode the backs of Malone (1977 and ’81) and Hakeem Olajuwon (1986, ’94, ’95 and ’97). A solid Game 1
Enter Clint Capela, a rookie who had been legally allowed to purchase liquor for less than 24 hours when he subbed for the injured Howard at Oracle Arena on Tuesday.
Capela, a rookie who was the No. 25 pick in last year’s draft, is not Moses or Kareem or Dwight.
“Clint is not going to turn into Dwight Howard overnight,” McHale said following Wednesday’s practice. “He might, but I don’t know. He’s got to hit the weight room.”
Capela is a skinny fellow — he is listed at 6-10 and 245 pounds, which is accurate if his Afro weighs 15 pounds — but he is relentless and, unlike his native Switzerland, willing to mix it up.
The Rockets drafted him as a long-term project and brought him up from the Development League during the season only to fill the role of practice dummy because so many of their big men were injured.
Capela finished the regular season with 14 DNPs (did not play) and only 12 actual games played, but he has played in more games and spent more minutes on the court in the playoffs than he did in the regular season.
When asked about Capela’s minutes late in the year, McHale said if Capela were playing in the playoffs, the Rockets would be in trouble. He was wrong.
Capela was one of the better Rockets in Game 1, with nine points on 4-for-4 shooting, four rebounds, an assist, a steal and a blocked shot in 13 minutes.
Capela figures to see more playing time if Howard doesn’t play in Game 2.
“I will be ready. I will get my mind ready,” Capela said.
Inexperience might be a factor. Lack of confidence certainly isn’t.
Capela always has been taller than others his age. As was the case with Olajuwon, he played so much soccer coming up that his footwork is advanced.
He shifts and glides with ease, even moving his feet well enough that the Rockets didn’t panic when switching on defense left him guarding Stephen Curry, the Warriors’ 6-3 speedster. Capela wanted some. “In my mind, I was thinking yeah, I can do something (against Curry),” he said. ‘Seizes those moments’
Curry drained a long jump shot on one of those switches, a play that was seen on highlight shows. Capela wasn’t fazed.
“Yeah, he scored because he’s a good player, a good shooter,” Capela said. “I was just trying to do my best, and he still scored. It was a tough shot.
“I remember he missed one, too, when I was on him, and nobody’s talking about that. Everybody is just talking about when he scored.”
The self-assured smile that accompanied that comment is one reason the Rockets don’t anticipate the potential spotlight being too big for the 21-yearold Capela, who played in the French League.
“Young fella … when his name is called, he seizes those moments,” guard James Harden said.
Capela’s next big moment could come Thursday night. From D-League to difference-maker in the conference finals?
“The league has changed, sure, but in my mind, I just say I’m just going to play basketball. That’s it,” Capela said. “It’s the same sport.”
Maybe in this case, what the youngster doesn’t know won’t hurt him.