Los Angeles Lakers: 3 big questions going into the 2020-21 NBA season

2. What will be Montrezl Harrell’s role?

It was surprising to hear that the Los Angeles Lakers chose to use their full midlevel exception on former LA Clippers center Montrezl Harrell. At 6’7″ he is an undersized pivot, trying to make up in energy what he lacks in size. He’s a superb offensive center around the basket, deadly in the pick-and-roll, and can clean the glass and spark transition.

Harrell also provides nothing in the way of rim protection, perimeter defense or floor-spacing. He doesn’t have the size or instincts to be more than a below-average interior defender, and he lacks the agility and reflexes to guard switches or power forwards on the perimeter. Offensively he gums up the paint for any action he is not a part of. If the team hopes he can shoot from outside, they’re making up a wish dream: he went 0-18 from deep last year, and for his career is just 5 for 50 (10 percent).

It would be logical to assume that Harrell would start, given the valuable cap exception the Lakers used to sign him and that he was leaving another title contender that guaranteed him a large, if not starting, role. Starting would give him the safety net of Anthony Davis to protect the rim and space the floor.

The problem with Harrell starting is that he is redundant with that group. While other players will score, the three starters other than LeBron James and Davis are there to complement the stars. Harrell is a worse option than James and Davis (that’s no slight on Harrell), and he is one of the league’s worst use of minutes for a player who won’t be touching the ball often.

Moving him to the bench makes more sense from every angle but the emotional/political one. Marc Gasol is a defensive savant and can both move the ball and shoot from outside. He does not have Harrell’s athleticism or motor and would be a poor choice as a lineup’s first or second option at this point in his career. In the starting lineup, he can be a low-usage big who plays defense and shoots open shots when they come to him.

Harrell could then be a high-minutes bench player. He could pair with Dennis Schroeder as a devastating pick-and-roll combination, he could be a part of a switching scheme in a frontcourt with Kyle Kuzma, and the Lakers wouldn’t have to worry about other teams targeting him as much when other bench units are in.

Will Harrell be satisfied with the same super-sub role he had with the Clippers? If his goal is to win a title, then yes he will fill his role. If he moved his gear across the hall in Staples Center expecting a larger role, he could be disappointed.