The Rockets new inside player suffered a DNP for the first time this season, but is this also foreseeable?

The game against the Orlando Magic was the first time Clint Capela was DNP this season, but combined with his previous performance and his effect on the court, this will happen sooner or later. After all, no head coach will take the risk of giving away points to try to train the players. So I also want to ask those Rockets fans who said Capela's signing was a good signing this summer, how they view this signing now.

I think many Rockets fans have quite a problem in their thinking. They don't look at the problem from the perspective of the team as a whole, but blindly support the operations of the Rockets management. The Rockets already have two good centers on the roster, and Alperen Sengun needs to play a lot of playing time in each game, while Steven Adams only rests in back-to-back games. The twin-tower tactic did have a certain effect in the playoffs last season, but this was largely because they faced the Golden State Warriors whose starting center was Quinten Post. Facing other playoff-level teams with normal inside strength, everyone can see whether the twin-tower strategy is effective and how effective it is. What's more, the twin-tower tactic is not the current mainstream tactic. It has very obvious shortcomings and it is impossible to use this tactic for a long time.

The current total salary of the Rockets is US$194 million, but at the center position alone, the combined salary of the three people is 55 million. Excluding Kevin Durant's maximum salary of more than $50 million, you can imagine the impact of the center position on the Rockets' salary. What's more, Capela is a veteran whose ability has declined and is over 30 years old. His performance last season was not ideal, but the Rockets still insisted on providing him with a three-year contract with an average salary of US$7 million. He currently has three years left on his contract, and everyone can imagine how much his trading value will be in the market.

Another point is that Capela's salary has directly caused the Rockets to be infinitely close to the top tycoon line. As a result, they are now unable to even provide a basic salary contract, and the 15th man's quota can only be wasted. If the Rockets had used a veteran's minimum salary contract to sign a certain third center, such as signing back Jock Landale with a minimum salary, and the Rockets successfully applied for Fred VanVleet's injury exception, they could free up almost $5 million to sign the last person.

We should really praise good signings, such as Josh Okogie. Signing a player like this to a minimum salary contract is definitely worth the money. He has indeed played a key role. However, Capela's signing, including the signing of Dorian Finney-Smith, is problematic in terms of salary and years, and will have a long-term impact on the team.