Report: Montrezl Harrell, 76ers Agree to 2-year, $5.2M Contract After Hornets Stint

Montrezl Harrell helped lead the Charlotte Hornets to the play-in tournament last season, but he is headed elsewhere for 2022-23.

The big man agreed to a two-year, $5.2 million contract with the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski:

Harrell had hinted earlier Tuesday that he was on the move:

There was a time when adding a player of Harrell's caliber would have been among the headline moves of the offseason.

The 28-year-old was at his best as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers for three seasons from 2017-18 through 2019-20. He took home the Sixth Man of the Year during his final season with the team while averaging 18.6 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game.

Harrell chose to join the Los Angeles Lakers the following offseason in what seemed like a major move. While he put up solid numbers in 2020-21 with 13.5 points and 6.2 rebounds a night, he largely fell out of the Purple and Gold's primary rotation. The Louisville product averaged less than 10 minutes per game in a first-round loss to the Phoenix Suns and didn't even appear in Games 2 or 3.

The Lakers shipped him to the Washington Wizards last offseason as part of the blockbuster deal that brought Russell Westbrook to the Lakers. Washington then traded him to the Hornets in February.

While Harrell wasn't exactly the double-double threat who was the league's best bench player with the Clippers, he still put up decent numbers in Charlotte. He averaged 11.4 points and 4.9 rebounds in 21 minutes per game across 25 contests.

Harrell posted nine points and three boards in 16 minutes during the play-in tournament loss to the Atlanta Hawks and found himself as part of a crowded frontcourt with Mason Plumlee, P.J. Washington and Jalen McDaniels.

Of note, Harrell was arrested on a felony drug charge in June. However, that charge was recently reduced to a misdemeanor, according to Wojnarowski:

Harrell isn't a franchise-altering signing, but he is just 28 and should be solid veteran depth for a team looking to make a playoff run.

With that as the background, it isn't surprising Philadelphia chose to sign him.