Clint Capela exits Game 5 with knee injury

Hawks big man Clint Capela departed the second half of Atlanta’s must-win Game 5 with a right knee injury, per Marc J. Spears of Andscape (via Twitter).

Atlanta’s starting center had missed the club’s first three contests with a hyperextension of the same ligament. The Hawks trail the Heat 3-1 in their first-round series matchup.

Should the Hawks rally to win tonight (Miami is leading in the fourth quarter as of this writing), it remains to be seen whether or not this will be a long-term issue for Capela in any hypothetical future games. Starting power forward John Collins was moved up a slot to center prior to Capela’s return to the lineup in Game 4.

Capela played for 19:25 in tonight’s contest before departing with the injury, scoring two points on 1-of-2 shooting from the floor. He also pulled down eight boards and logged a steal and a block.

The 6’10” center is in the fourth year of a five-season, $90M deal he signed while with the Rockets.