《2020FA》跳進湖水成蛟龍？Montrezl Harrell 2年1800萬加盟洛杉磯湖人 - NBA - 籃球

《2020FA》跳進湖水成蛟龍？Montrezl Harrell 2年1800萬加盟洛杉磯湖人 - NBA - 籃球

2015年被休士頓火箭在次輪第32順位選中，Montrezl Harrell的NBA之旅，起始於Dwight Howard火箭時期的最後一年，同時也是總教練Kevin McHale將要下台，隔季改由Mike D’Antoni執教的過渡期。當時的火箭已經建立了「一內四外」的陣形，只是四、五號位還有後來扶正的Clint Capela、外線能力不錯的Donatas Motiejunas，Harrell要在生涯第二季才擠進輪值，然而，隨著火箭隊魔球理念愈發堅定，缺少外線能力和先天的身高劣勢都讓Harrell在火箭隊顯得可有可無。

2017年的暑假，Chris Paul藉由先簽後換的方式離開快艇，前往火箭，火箭陣中一批板凳上的角色球員前往快艇，Harrell也是其中的一員。快艇在該季的震盪不小，季中交易了季前續了五年大約的Blake Griffin，球隊的重組期來得很突然，但對Harrell來說，或許並不陌生，彷彿永遠都有人擋在他前面，所以一開始在快艇時，他的角色遊走在四、五號位，當他是五號位時，會與DeAndre Jordan或Willie Reed搭配，而當球隊試圖提速時，他會擔任五號位與Blake Griffin和Danilo Gallinari搭配，但，真正扭轉其生涯的搭配，來自Lou Williams。

有點像Chris Paul過往與Griffin或DeAndre Jordan的搭配那樣，擋拆後的空拋灌籃接力，形成一把利器屢屢撕裂對手的禁區，Harrell的優勢在於「積極跑動」和「身材厚度」，這讓他在執行擋拆配合時能確實將防守者擋住，而轉身後的跑動跟爆發力也不在話下，兩個簡單的動作做到極致，造就了他和Lou Williams同隊期間分別拿下最佳第六人的榮景。

快艇進入重組，也並不打算擺爛重建，這就意味著，球隊需要穩定的打法來構成一、兩個賽季的過渡期，Harrell的舞台頓時成形。

在所有足以衝擊總冠軍的隊伍中，除了夠份量的先發之外，一批穩定輪值的板凳球員能否在季後賽中替主力蓄積能量，不僅僅是提供主力下場喘息的時間，更進一步的，在球隊的體系中扮演不可或缺的角色，甚至影響比賽走勢，好讓身負重任的王牌能在關鍵時刻，無後顧之憂的全力以赴。

最初，Lou Williams和Montrezl Harrell的組合，像一塊穩定而美好的基礎，他們屢屢以不到三十分鐘的出賽時間締造媲美先發的數據，那時的快艇尚未迎來Kawhi Leonard和Paul George，一票綠葉型的球員加上先發以上，巨星未滿的球員，卻能在很短的時間打出競爭季後賽的實力，前景一片光明，人們總放大著Harrell打出來的數據，被他越來越多的慶祝動作所迷惑，相信他會是快艇最終競逐總冠軍的陣容中，很重要的一片拼圖，尤其，當球隊另一個分擔五號位工作的，是和他類型截然不同的Ivica Zubac時。

Doc Rivers確實在執教快艇的後期順應時代潮流，擺上更多的「小陣容」。因應不同對手，有時擺出三名後衛在場，更多時候，前場的組成會是兩名具有火力的前鋒搭配Harrell，如此一來，場上的移動速度會比擺上Zubac時快上很多，這也是Doc Rivers一直傾向的調度：「雖然Harrell的身高是硬傷，但是他的速度比Zubac快很多。」

Harrell在來到快艇的第二年便不負Doc Rivers的重用，很快繳出了亮眼數據，「野獸灌籃」、「板凳暴徒」的形容隨之而來，但他卻在這個過程中有所迷失。

球隊更仰賴Lou Williams臨場的應變能力，能夠自行砍分的他，多次上演一波流，硬生生扭轉比賽走勢，錦上添花的，是Lou Williams還能與Montrezl Harrell搭配，內外通吃。但，缺乏自主持球能力亦無較大防守範圍的Harrell，立足的根基，全紮在進攻端。進攻端高效的得分表現讓Doc Rivers願意繼續使用他，更明顯的是，他需要Lou Williams跟他搭配，當他與球隊中的其他後衛搭配時，便失去了那種火花。倘若在這種情況下，他還能持續自我突破，想辦法以其他方式幫助球隊，至少心態可嘉，甚至也有可能提高其重要性，然而，他似乎不是那麼想的。

Patrick Beverley Makes His Frustration Clear About Montrezl Harrell Signing with Lakers

Montrezl Harrell has moved homes. The reigning sixth-man of the year has signed with the Los Angeles Lakers on a two-year deal. This move comes as a shock, as Harrell was a Clipper last season.

Harrell is coming off a fantastic season with the Clippers. He averaged 18.6 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1 block and assist each game. He had these numbers after coming off the bench and averaging close to 27 minutes a game.

Harrell is a fantastic addition to the Los Angeles Lakers. He is part of the rejuvenation process for the defending champions. The Lakers won the NBA Championship last season but had a clearly aging squad. The additions of Harrell and sixth-man runner-up Dennis Schröder are fantastic moves the Lakers have made to defend their championship this season.

Harrell has taken a smaller salary than people expected him to. He signed with the Lakers for 2 years and $19 million. Given Harrell’s performances this season, he could’ve garnered a lot more money. But Harrell may prioritize winning a championship over maximizing his salary at the moment.

Harrell’s agent, Rich Paul, has connections with the Lakers. Paul is also the agent of Anthony Davis and LeBron James, who play for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Pat Bev reacts to Montrezl Harrell leaving

Frfr happy for him tho https://t.co/8JnvRHJGVd — Patrick Beverley (@patbev21) November 21, 2020

Clippers fans are very unhappy about Harrell leaving. After the Clippers lost to the Nuggets in the 2nd round of the playoffs, rumors emerged about a bust-up in the locker-room. Harrell and Paul George were rumored to have had a heated argument after game 7.

It is possible that the fallout with Paul George contributed to Harrell’s decision to exit. Or perhaps it was the stability and camaraderie of the Los Angeles Lakers that lured him to join them.

One person who is very unhappy about Harrell joining the Lakers is his former Clippers teammate Patrick Beverley. Pat Bev took to Twitter to comment on the deal. Replying to a Tweet with the news, Pat Bev just said “What” with the facepalm and swearing emoji.

Beverley, however, squashed rumors of animosity between the two with a follow-up tweet. Replying to Bleacher Report’s meme about their next meeting, Beverley replied, “Frfr happy for him”.

While Beverly and Harrell are good friends of the court, it will be an interesting match up when the Lakers play the Clippers on opening night. The two peers will be waiting to go against one another to prove a point.

How much better does Montrezl Harrell actually make the Los Angeles Lakers?

The biggest surprise so far in free agency? That would be the Los Angeles Lakers coming to terms on a deal with Montrezl Harrell.

Not only are the Lakers reportedly getting the best centre and one of the best players available in this year’s free agent class, they are getting him at a bargain. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, Harrell is planning to sign a two-year, $19.0 million deal with the Lakers.

The second season will be a player option, giving Harrell an opportunity to rehab his value following a disappointing end to the 2019-20 season with the LA Clippers.

Montrezl Harrell is planning to sign with the Lakers for two years and $19 million with second season being a player option, agent Rich Paul tells ESPN — Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN) November 21, 2020

This is a fascinating addition for the Lakers on a number of levels. First and foremost, it’s a big-time pickup for their second unit.

The Lakers ranked in the top half of the league in bench scoring last season, but they didn’t have anyone who was capable of scoring at the level of either Harrell or Dennis Schröder, the latter of whom the Lakers acquired in a trade from the Oklahoma City Thunder earlier in the week. On the season, Schröder and Harrell finished first and second, respectively, in total points scored off the bench. (Kyle Kuzma led the Lakers in bench scoring, but he scored just over half as many points as Schröder and Harrell did). They were both incredibly efficient, with Schröder posting .471/.379/.833 shooting splits off the bench and Harrell shooting 58.1 percent from the field.

The combination of Schröder and Harrell should take a lot of pressure off of LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the regular season (assuming Davis re-signs with the Lakers, of course, which he is expected to do), similar to how the combination of Lou Williams and Harrell took some pressure off of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George last regular season. Schröder and Harrell should form a similar one-two punch as Williams and Harrell did on the Clippers, which was one of the best pick-and-roll tandems in the league during their three years as teammates.

MORE: Schröder makes the Lakers even scarier

Schröder isn’t quite as good of a pick-and-roll scorer as Williams is — the biggest difference between them being Williams is a far superior 3-point shooter off the dribble — but he still ranked around the league average in efficiency last season. With two or three shooters surrounding them, Schröder and Harrell should give the Lakers enough firepower to rest James and Davis together more than they did last season.

For what it’s worth, the Lakers’ most-used lineup with James and Davis on the bench last season featured Rajon Rondo, Alex Caruso, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Kyle Kuzma and Dwight Howard. That unit logged a total of 29 minutes together and was outscored by an average of 6.8 points per 100 possessions. The Clippers, on the other hand, had three different lineups log over 50 minutes on the season that didn’t include Leonard and George. Each one of those lineups were built around Williams and Harrell, and two of them had a positive net rating.

That’s still a relatively small sample size, but it would be huge if the Lakers could find a competent five-man unit that doesn’t include James and Davis.

Most used non-Kawhi Leonard and Paul George Clippers lineups (2019-20) Lineup Minutes Offensive Rating Defensive Rating Net Rating Lou Williams, Jerome Robinson, Rodney McGruder, JaMychal Green, Montrezl Harrell 94 109.6 93.2 +16.4 Lou Williams, Landry Shamet, Rodney McGruder, JaMychal Green, Montrezl Harrell 66 94.0 108.5 -14.5 Lou Williams, Reggie Jackson, Landry Shamet, JaMychal Green, Montrezl Harrell 60 124.6 88.9 +35.7

As for Harrell’s fit next to James and Davis, it isn’t quite as clear.

Offensively, Harrell is a huge upgrade from both Howard and JaVale McGee, who made up the team’s centre rotation last season. The only player in the entire league who scored more points in the paint than Harrell last season was Giannis Antetokounmpo. (Harrell actually scored more points in the paint than Howard and McGee combined in 2019-20). Harrell is one of best cutters and rollers in the NBA, and he’s greatly improved as a face-up scorer out of the post over the last couple of seasons.

If teams double team James or Davis, Harrell will make them pay with well-timed cuts to the basket.

While Harrell has played with some good playmakers in his career, he’s never played with a passer like James. Pick-and-rolls between the two of them will be incredibly difficult to slow down as long as they’re surrounded by enough shooting.

The Lakers probably won’t run much offence through him when James and Davis are on the court, but Harrell can make a play for himself when needed. That’s not something they had in Howard or McGee last season.

Harrell doesn’t offer any spacing as a shooter — he’s made 27.8 percent of his field goal attempts from midrange and 10.0 percent from 3-point range in his career — but Davis is a good enough shooter for him to play to his strengths when they’re on the court together. According to NBA.com, Davis logged 59.9 percent of his minutes last season playing next to McGee or Howard. He has plenty of experience sharing a frontcourt with a non-shooter.

Where it gets complicated is on the other end of the court. Harrell is not a bad defender — he graded out as one of the most effective rim protectors in the league last season and offers some switchability at the centre position — but he lacks the size at 6-foot-7 to defend bruising centres like Nikola Jokic, which came to a head in last season’s playoffs.

The NBA’s matchup data is far from perfect, but it points to Howard having much more success defending Jokic than Harrell did. Whereas Jokic scored 28 points on 8-for-16 shooting from the field in the 21 minutes he was defended by Howard in the Western Conference Finals, he scored 34 points on 13-for-20 shooting in the 18 minutes he was defended by Harrell in the Western Conference Semifinals.

It didn’t help Harrell in free agency that the lasting image from last season was Jokic doing things like this against him in the playoffs:

Not every team in the league has someone who can punish Harrell in the same way Jokic did, but it raises an interesting question as to who the Lakers close games with at centre this season. Do they sacrifice offence by going with McGee? Do they sacrifice some defence by going with Harrell? Or do they simply go smaller with Davis?

The Davis-at-centre lineups will still likely give the Lakers their highest ceiling on offence and defence, but Davis has always preferred playing power forward. With Howard leaving the Lakers for the Philadelphia 76ers on a one-year deal, either Davis is going to have to match up with the likes of Jokic and Joel Embiid when push comes to shove or one of Harrell and McGee will. Howard is a far more limited offensive player than Harrell at this stage of his career, but he can make life difficult for some of the best centres in the league on defence, even if it’s only for a handful of minutes at a time.

If it does become a problem, the Lakers could always pursue another centre before now and the playoffs, whether it is in free agency or in a trade. Centres with Howard’s defensive ability don’t exactly grow on trees, but neither do centres with Harrell’s scoring ability. For the price, this is a no-brainer for the Lakers.

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