Can Montrezl Harrell live up to a heftier contract after free agency?

Montrezl Harrell’s value has plenty to do with his measly current salary. With a new deal pending in free agency, can he keep that same image?

It was always easy for Montrezl Harrell to exceed the levels people thought he was capped at. Such is what happens when a former second-round pick signs a team-friendly two-year deal worth $12 million before becoming one of the league’s premier bench contributors with the LA Clippers.

Before the 2019-20 season’s abrupt halt, the fifth-year big was putting up career-highs with 18.6 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. Numbers matched by only 18 other players, Harrell the only among the playing fewer than 30 minutes a night.

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His contributions to the league’s highest-scoring bench for the second-best team in the west has set up a massive payday whenever free agency commences, but also the underlying burdens that come with it. Because whether we admit it or not, our perception of an NBA player has a lot to do with the money they earn.

Few voice their displeasure for a benchwarmer only taking up a commensurate amount of the salary cap. It’s those who fail to live up to the contract who receive criticism.

Conversely, a player remains out of the harsh spotlight when the implicit nature of their end of a contract is being fulfilled. They’re praised when producing past their perceived value and even receive a type of pass for flaws that would otherwise drag a player down.

Case in point: What Harrell lacks in height he makes up for in determination on both sides of the ball. That doesn’t make his 6’7” standing any less of a concern on the glass, where opponents have grabbed offensive rebounds at a higher rate when he’s on the court this season.

P.J. Tucker deals with similar issues as a 6’5” starting center. For the inches he surrenders, however, Tucker aids the Houston Rockets’ offense to the tune of a 37.0 percentage from beyond the arc on 4.0 attempts per game.

Harrell, meanwhile, has made only five triples in his entire career.

He is one of the premier roll men at 1.31 points per possession with a restricted area field goal percentage of 67.8. But the premise of trotting out an undersized center comes from the benefits similar to the spacing Tucker provides for Houston. Relying on a big man’s game in a wing’s body simply isn’t the recipe for modern-day success.

So, how have the Clippers gotten by? Players like Kawhi Leonard and Paul George certainly help. These are two All-Stars LA was capable of acquiring in part because of the extra salary saved on Harrell’s deal.

What happens when he’s earning north of $20 million, a figure he was likely to command in free agency — at least before the salary cap was thrown out of whack. Or when a team finds itself counting on Harrell to be more than a spark off the bench?

This is the distinction to make by potential suitors before sending out an eight-figure offer. Not denying the immense talent Harrell is but understanding that which contributes to his appeal and realizing the difficulties it would have translating in a higher tax bracket.

There’s a difference between producing numbers in less than 30 minutes compared to pushing 40. Dominating second-string competition versus matching up against the best a team has to offer. Always forced to reach expectations instead of having the bare minimum exceed them.

Montrezl Harrell’s shortcomings aren’t scrutinized because his contract only demands so much from him. Whether back with the Clippers or elsewhere, that bar is going to be raised next season.

For his sake and that of the team that signs him, here’s to hoping he’s ready to reach it.

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