NBA Exec: Montrezl Harrell Could Drop from $18M Player to $12M After Restart

There would be severe financial implications if the NBA doesn't resume its season next month. However, some players about to hit the free-agent market could see their value slide if they don't perform well after the restart.

One Eastern Conference executive told Tim Bontemps of ESPN highlighted Montrezl Harrell as a guy who could see his value slide. 

"Everybody has done their work," the executive said. "So you can only go down. Harrell could go from [being] an $18 million guy to a $12 million guy. They can only get worse.

"Maybe some third-tier guy plays well and moves up a tier, but the top-tier guys can only get worse. That work is already done."

Harrell already had perhaps the most interesting free-agent case of any guy hitting the market. The 26-year-old has emerged over the last three seasons as one of the NBA's premier bench players, averaging 18.6 points and 7.1 rebounds this term before the league's postponement. 

However, the fifth-year forward out of Louisville has done most of his damage in that time against bench bigs and lacks both size (6'7", 240 lbs) and the ability to stretch the floor. Much of Harrell's effectiveness comes from his infectious energy, which is vital when he's leading a bench unit and making a little less than the mid-level exception. His impact becomes less important when it comes with a $15 million-per-year price tag, especially when there will be matchups in the playoff when he's at a clear disadvantage.

Harrell is the type of player who could be played off the floor in certain playoff situations, which could depress his value on the open market. That is all without factoring in the potential salary-cap implications of revenue lost from the pandemic.

Suitors were already expected to be few and far between this summer, with most teams gearing up for the free-agent class of 2021. Guys like Harrell could see their pool shrink even further if the cap goes down by a significant amount.