He may not put up the same stats as other guys, but Montrezl Harrell seems to be the key to the LA Clippers bench success.
Montrezl Harrell may not be the team’s scoring leader nor the guy that fans first think of when they imagine the LA Clippers. But none of that matters. What matters is that Trezz is the key to the LA Clippers’ bench success.
This summer, the Clippers eagerly brought Harrell back on a 2 year, $12 million deal. This was very favorable for LA as Harrell and already proved his worth. Still, the 24-year-old may be already searching for his next big pay day.
Only 10 games into the season, Harrell is putting up 12.1 points, grabbing 6.0 rebounds, blocking 1.7 shots and grabbing 1.0 steals. Not one, not two, not three, but all of these are career highs. The sample size isn’t much, but Harrell has made positive strides in each of his seasons. He also seemingly doesn’t miss, converting on 64.3% of his field goals, which currently ranks 20th in the league.
Trezz has managed to stay humble through the process. He seemingly relishes his role energizing the team from the bench. When asked at a meet and greet after last night’s victory, Harrell said all he wants to do is bring energy.
@MONSTATREZZ “Honestly as far as starting, you know that’s not really something that I’m worried about. The only thing I’m worried about with this team is bringing energy and not quitting.” How can you not love this guy? #trezz pic.twitter.com/GrSXDby040
— Ricky Chu (@RikDaddy) November 6, 2018
That’s the right mindset. After Boban Marjanovic was given the starting role against Orlando on Friday night, Harrell didn’t make a peep. Sure, he’s more mobile and younger than Marjanovic, but perhaps he realized he is still best used as a ying to Boban’s yang.
Harrell and Marjanovic give opposing teams completely different looks on both ends of the court. Although each has their own shortcoming, the two can cause opposing coaches to adjust on the fly.
The best part? Boban can use his size and strength to wear down opposing centers. Then, enter Trezz. His sparkplug attitude off the bench will either completely tire out starting centers or force them to hit the pine in favor of their backup. Whichever the case, it has proved effective in the two games that the Clippers have employed this tactic.
The team may even go as Montrezl does. Yes, Lou Williams can come in any night and drop 20 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander can wow us with thoughts of the future, but Harrell does something special when he enters the game. His fire and passion ignites the team and helps keep them focused. There’s hardly a statistic for that. It doesn’t matter. Clipper Nation knows.