Clint Capela was at the Atlanta Hawks’ practice facility doing push-ups 40 minutes after the team’s shootaround ended Saturday morning for that night’s game against the Charlotte Hornets. There was no one else in sight with mostly everyone having left the facility by then, aside from Bogdan Bogdanović and Hawks coaching assistant Dipesh Mistry.

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It wasn’t Mistry instructing Capela to get on the floor to do push-ups but Bogdanović. Since training camp a few months ago, Bogdanović has been helping Capela become more comfortable at the free-throw line. Several times a week, well after practice has ended, Capela has been working on his free throws with Bogdanović providing guidance; other times, he tries to create a distraction to help Capela work on his focus.

This day, Capela didn’t make five free throws in a row like Bogdanović wanted, so Capela had to do five push-ups. Inside the Hawks’ practice facility, there are numerous baskets, so different drills can be happening at the same time. Capela and Bogdanović rotate on each basket several times until they feel satisfied with the day’s progress.

Bogdanović stands directly next to Capela at the free-throw line to make sure he’s getting the proper arc on the ball and is finishing his shot all in one motion. Capela has a hitch at the top of his form, and it’s one of the main reasons why he’s always been one of the poorest free-throw shooters in the NBA. While Capela’s hitch is still there, Bogdanović has been stressing to him that the fix to negate the hitch is to at least finish the shot in one motion instead of pausing at the top.

This is the kind of arc and motion, even with the hitch at the top, that Bogdanović is looking for.

And this is a free-throw attempt from last season, before Bogdanović started working with him. As you can see, there’s no arc on this shot.

Capela is well aware that he needs to get better at the line and develop some consistency, and the work he’s put in with Bogdanović hasn’t shown just yet. Sometimes at the line, Capela can get the proper arc and accomplish the shot in one fluid motion with no problem. Other times, he admits that he overthinks, and it messes up his rhythm. He’s shooting 54.5 percent this season, and in close games when he’s on the floor, teams have deliberately fouled him to send him to the line. It puts the Hawks in a tough spot sometimes, because they need him out there for defensive purposes in those close games, but he’s also a liability on the other end of the floor and an easy target for opposing teams to exploit because of his poor free-throw shooting.

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Realizing improvement is necessary, Capela went to Bogdanović for help. When Bogdanović was still playing overseas for Fenerbahçe, a similar situation unfolded inside their locker room. His teammate, Gigi Datome, was an excellent free-throw shooter, and Ekpe Udoh was struggling at the line, so he asked Datome if he would work with him after practice to fix his form. After working with Datome for some time, Udoh improved.

Bogdanović knew that if the time came when a teammate would come to him asking for help with shooting, there wouldn’t be any hesitation to take all of the time needed to be there.

“That’s just Bogi,” Capela said. “That’s how his mentality is, and that’s how my mentality is, too. We don’t hesitate to help one another. There are times where we’ve just sat in my car and talked for over an hour. This just happens naturally. It isn’t something that is scheduled. It’s within the flow of life. I know he doesn’t mind doing stuff like that, and that’s why I enjoy it so much.”

The two became fast friends after Bogdanović signed with the Hawks last offseason, and their connection was instantaneous. Capela has vacationed with Bogdanović in Serbia, where Bogdanović is from, and this past offseason, they vacationed in Miami together. When the Hawks are on the road, they frequently get coffee together before games and go out to eat on late nights.

It’s easy for the two to talk and hang out for hours at each other’s houses or at the team hotel talking about life, their goals and dreams, their families and everything in between. You’d think they’ve known each other their entire lives with how tight their bond is.

“I don’t know Clint from Europe because I never played against him, but I know he’s from Europe, so automatically it’s like we know each other,” Bogdanović said. “He understands my culture, and I understand his culture. We automatically clicked.”

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“Most of the European guys — especially someone like him who is genuine and different, and I’m kind of the same way — it’s just easy to talk with him,” Capela said of Bogdanović. “The subjects we talk about are just interesting to me. I feel like we can give our opinions to one another and understand each other. I feel like it’s just what Europeans do. We can get coffee or just sit in my car and talk. That close connection is just something Europeans do at an early age.”

Bogdanović’s patience is something Capela most appreciates, because he knows it’s going to be a work in progress to reach the level he wants to end up. Patience is one of the qualities most needed when it comes to player development, because everyone grows at different speeds, and progress isn’t always linear.

Bogdanović’s understanding of this partly is why Capela thinks he could be a coach one day. His ability to connect with everyone and his perception of what makes the most successful teams work also could lead Bogdanović to a coaching position whenever his playing career ends. Bogdanović has thought about getting into coaching or player development because, as he simply says, “I love basketball, and I’m passionate about basketball.”

What’s also important for coaches to be successful is the ability to adjust and adapt to each individual player. The best coaches are the ones who understand how to get through to each person, and not ones who think an overarching strategy should apply to everyone.

“I’m not trying to put stuff in that I like,” Bogdanović said. “It has to be what he wants. I just want to help him create a routine and develop habits that he likes. I feel like he needs to relax and enjoy shooting. It’s nothing crazy. It’s really about building habits and being a good teammate.

“I like doing this. I like helping my teammates, and I see how he wants to do this to get better. I want to help him, and it’s easy to work with guys who really want to get better, and he really wants to get better. I’m just trying to help him. I can’t change his shot, but I can help him. The biggest thing for him is he wants to change and wants to create a routine that can help him shoot better. It’s all about giving my teammate confidence, and I believe in the work.”

This isn’t a revolutionary concept of a teammate helping another out when he’s asked, but it’s the bond being formed off the floor that could lead to bigger, important things in the future for the Hawks. Coach Nate McMillan has seen this happen countless times in his decades of being around the NBA. He says what Capela and Bogdanović are doing is “a great thing, not a good thing, a great thing.”

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That chemistry, McMillan feels, is what separates the good teams from the great ones. After years of playing together, the Warriors showed what close relationships on and off the floor can do for your franchise. General manager Travis Schlenk, who came over from Golden State, has made it a point to draft, trade for and sign players who are not only excellent on the court but off it, too.

Capela’s and Bogdanović’s off-court relationship is exactly what the Hawks are looking for when they talk about building the ideal team.

“He’s more than a teammate to me. He’s my friend,” Capela said of Bogdanović. “Sometimes guys want to leave (the practice facility) and have their alone time. With him, he’s my friend outside of here. It makes it really special to me, because sometimes, NBA teammates don’t have that off the court. I know there’s not a relationship like that in the NBA between players like we have. It’s just so simple with him. We always have a great time together. He’s a simple person. I’m a simple person. It’s not about us being millionaires or us being in the NBA, it’s just the personalities we have makes it special.”

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(Photo: Scott Cunningham / NBAE via Getty Images)