Atlanta Hawks center Clint Capela is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season after suffering a hand injury.

The team disclosed that Capela has a ligament injury in the fourth metacarpal of his left hand. He will be re-evaluated in three to four weeks before a timetable to return is established.

Capela has been coming off the bench since mid-January, playing just 17 minutes per game since the All-Star break. In those 10 games, he has averaged 6.4 points and 6.4 rebounds.

Onyeka Okongwu supplanted him as the starting center and has averaged 14.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and a block. He has had 28 games in the role and is playing 30 minutes per game.

The Hawks are seventh in the East with a 33-36 record, 1.5 games ahead of the Orlando Magic in eighth.

Atlanta’s next game is against a Golden State Warriors team that will be without Steph Curry.

Who Steps In For Capela?

In addition to Capela being out, Larry Nance Jr. has already been unavailable with a fracture in his knee. On Feb. 12, he was slated to miss at least six weeks.

Mouhamed Gueye has seen an increase in playing time at power forward but next up as a big is Dominick Barlow.

Barlow has been averaging close to 17 minutes per game in March, putting up 7.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks.

Hawks’ New Direction Taking Shape

Trading De’Andre Hunter has opened up playing time for 2024 NBA Draft top selection Zaccharie Risacher, not to mention the injury to Jalen Johnson.

Bogdan Bogdanovic was traded for Terance Mann and Bones Hyland as well.

The future core looks to be taking shape in the form of Johnson, Risacher, Dyson Daniels, and Onyeka Okongwu. Trae Young is the best player on the team but there could be teams circling around the Hawks to pry him away this summer.

Is that something the Hawks would be genuinely open to exploring? The team is between a rock and a hard place with this year’s first-round pick owed to the San Antonio Spurs. Next year’s pick is also at risk of a swap with San Antonio.