The Rockets and Clippers considered a center swap last year

According to sources, the Rockets and Clippers considered a swap of their two starting centers last season.

The Rockets and Clippers almost traded centers Clint Capela and DeAndre Jordan for each other last season, says Zach Lowe of ESPN. The trade fell through when it was starting to gain a little traction.

It is certainly interesting to see that Clint Capela was able to be included in a trade. To be fair, Jordan is an upgrade from Clint in almost every way. The Rockets likely would have had to give up more players and picks in this deal.

Thankfully for both teams, this deal never happened. Why thankfully? Let’s take a look:

Why keeping Clint Capela is great for the Rockets

Clint Capela is growing into a great player for the Rockets. While it would have been nice to have DeAndre Jordan, a native Houstonian, on the team, his massive contract would be tough to deal with in the long run. Also, trading assets and picks away could have prevented the Chris Paul trade from ever happening.

Clint is a cheaper option for Houston who is growing into a player capable of playing like Jordan. So far this season, Capela is FOURTH in the NBA in Player Efficiency Rating and is averaging nearly 14 points and 11 rebounds per game. He is an efficient player who will only get better when CP3 comes back from injury.

Why keeping DeAndre Jordan is great for the Clippers

The Clippers were unsure about the future halfway through the season last year. After a hot start, they faced injury issues and had no clue if they would be able to re-sign stars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. That is likely why they were shopping Jordan as they wanted to prepare for the possibility of a tank.

However, they were able to re-sign Griffin and get a ton of value back from Houston in the CP3 trade to keep the team relevant. They have some young talent and are looking good so far in the new season. DeAndre Jordan is a huge part of that so far, averaging over 17 rebounds per game.

On the Clippers, reckoning with the past as they chart an uncertain future: https://t.co/e1vv9K7G60

— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) October 30, 2017

The Clippers, however, have not been able to sign Jordan to an extension. Will this no-trade for Capela come back to bite them soon?

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*All stats via Basketball-Reference*

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