Houston Rockets: Clint Capela still hoping to return right after All-Star break

The Houston Rockets have really missed their starting center who has been out for 13 games now with an injury. Will he be back when he originally planned to be?

Clint Capela is greatly missed right now by the Houston Rockets. His ability to rebound and play interior defense is something that the team needs badly, especially in a game/loss like last night.

Despite winning more games than losing in his absence, the constant theme has been being outrebounded. Last night, the Rockets blew a 25+ point lead in the game against the Thunder and lost the rebounding battle 53-38. Kenneth Faried has been great for the team, but him starting and playing heavy minutes has its effect on the defense and glass.

Thankfully, Clint Capela still seems to be on the right track to recovery. At the beginning of the injury, the team was hopeful that he could return after the All-Star break and continue his strong season. That is still the plan at the moment as the big man gave an update today via Fox 26’s Mark Berman:

Clint Capela (@CapelaClint) w/ update on his thumb:"I felt that my hand has been responding really well.I've said before my target is after the All-Star Break" (Has he circled a date?) "I haven't yet..If it keeps going really well, hopefully the 1st game after the All-Star Break" pic.twitter.com/ivPzR2un7I

— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) February 10, 2019

The schedule until then

The Rockets, thankfully, are approaching the All-Star break quickly. They have just two more games before the break, one against the Mavs tomorrow and one against the Timberwolves on Wednesday.

Against the Mavs, no DeAndre Jordan will be nice for the Capela-less Rockets. Houston should be able to keep afloat in that one with Faried at the center, but you never know with this team. They need to come ready to play no matter who the opponent is. The Mavs beat the Trail Blazers tonight, so they’re still no joke. Dallas still can rebound well.

Against the Wolves, the lack of Capela might hurt a bit more. Karl-Anthony Towns is one of the better rebounders and they are overall an average team on the boards. Clint normally loves and thrives in the matchups against KAT, we’ll see if Faried can do the same.

Stay tuned for more Capela updates! It would certainly be nice to have him out there against the Lakers and the Warriors right after the All-Star break.