Rockets must come to Steven Adams realization they should have known all along

The Houston Rockets, in signing Clint Capela this offseason to a roster already loaded with sizable players, had one goal in mind: allow themselves the versatility to play big even when Steven Adams is limited.

Now, as the season wears on, the team is evidently coming to the realization that Capela, in many ways, is as capable of Adams of taking on big minutes and that the best course of action may be to stagger their minutes more closely in order to ensure Adams' continued availability.

While Adams has been the best offensive rebounder in the league to this point, Capela is more than capable of taking on some of these minutes and providing an extra offensive punch that Adams does not. This will be a process that Ime Udoka and his coaching staff feel out over the course of the season, but, for now, it appears as though Capela should be in line for some increased run.

Clint Capela must be used more extensively in order to keep Adams healthy

Through the Rockets' first 15 games, Adams has been, undoubtedly, one of the team's most impactful players. Although he is averaging just six points and 1.5 assists, his 9.2 rebounds per game have been the biggest factor in Houstons' league-leading offensive rebound percentage, and this has been a major ingredient in their offensive success.

Although Udoka has gone away from starting the double-big lineup in favor of a smaller approach to start games, he has still employed it rather extensively in the middle portions of matchups, capitalizing upon the mistmatches it can create on both sides of the floor.

This, however, leaves Capela in a strange spot. Through his first 11 games, he averaged just 9.9 minutes, taking on a limited role swapping in for Adams or Sengun whenever it was needed.

Yet, he has been highly effective in those minutes, averaging 11.9 points, 15.3 rebounds and one assist per 36 minutes.

Across his last three games, this tenuous balance has played itself out. After receiving a DNP against the Orlando Magic, he received north of 13 minutes against the Cavaliers and the Suns, and, while the Rockets were -1 in his minutes in those games, his impact was clear.

While he received only three minutes in their matchup against the Denver Nuggets, Houston was playing from behind for most of that game, making it a notable outlier. Capela, without a doubt, will be used sparingly, but Udoka must be willing to grant him more consistent minutes when the situation calls for it.

Adams has already missed one game this season due to injury, and, in order to ensure his health, Capela should find himself in that 13-16 minute per game range. While he is not the unstoppable rebounder that Adams is, he has been effective enough in his minutes that the team can have confidence in his ability to hold his own when necessary.