The LA Clippers’ Montrezl Harrell has joined the team in the Orlando bubble.
With a simple tweet from Montrezl Harrell, the LA Clippers can now claim their whole team is in Orlando.
Just like that, the LA Clippers now have the favorite to win Sixth Man of the Year back on their bench and will soon be back at 100%. Harrell has been out of the bubble for a few weeks, having left on July 17. However, following the passing of his grandmother, no one knew if Harrell would (understandably) forgo playing in the bubble.
The timing here is key, as Harrell will have to undergo a mini quarantine now that he is back in the bubble. During a postgame interview, head coach Doc Rivers said he hoped to have Harrell back soon so he could get a game under his skin.
While Wednesday’s contest against the Denver Nuggets is likely out of the question, Harrell could play in Friday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. While that likely wouldn’t be enough to get his conditioning back up to par, it would still help the team to have their full rotation available.
Patrick Beverley shared his joy over Trezz’s return.
— Patrick Beverley (@patbev21) August 10, 2020
On Saturday, Harrell was named one of three finalists for Sixth Man of the Year, alongside teammate Lou Williams and the Thunder’s Dennis Schröder. Harrell is the Vegas favorite to win the award after posting a career-high 18.6 points per game and 7.1 rebounds. He shot an efficient 58% from the field and added 1.7 assists, 0.6 steals, and 1.1 blocks.
With Harrell back in the bubble, the Clippers will be ready to pursue their championship goals. Over the past few games, they have struggled, especially in last night’s loss to the Brooklyn Nets. Still, the team has not played a single one of their Orlando regular-season games with a full roster after the departure of Harrell, Beverley, and Williams and the load management of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
Doc Rivers will have his hands full getting the team ready with just two games left but hopefully can use the first round as a tune-up as well.