Former NBA Sixth Man of the Year Montrezl Harrell certainly left his mark on the Los Angeles Clippers across his stint with the franchise, but during a recent conversation with Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson, he made it clear that it wasn’t all sunshine and roses during his time with the team.
The Clippers left a bad taste in Harrell’s mouth with the way they handled his absence from the NBA bubble as he dealt with a personal tragedy. That seemingly influenced his decision to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers following the 2019-20 season.
But apparently, there were some other details also unfolding behind the scenes. Harrell explained that the Clippers didn’t offer him a deal to return because he “got into it” with teammate Paul George in the bubble.
“The Clippers didn’t even offer me because I got into it with Paul George in the bubble,” he said. “That’s what the other interviews I was talking about with that too that me and Paul George got into it in the NBA bubble. So I get into it with the superstar guy and at that point in time I’m up for a contract, I’m the more expendable guy.”
Harrell spent three seasons with the Clippers, and in the last one, he was named the league’s Sixth Man of the Year after he averaged 18.6 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists per contest in the regular season.
Harrell revealed last summer that he said to George, “I will knock you the f— out, bro,” after a miscommunication on defense in the bubble.
After joining the Lakers, Harrell did enough to once again garner consideration in the Sixth Man of the Year race, but his stint with the Purple and Gold didn’t end with a ring, and he had an unstable rotation spot in the playoffs.
These days, Harrell competes in other professional leagues. His last NBA action came in the 2022-23 season with the Philadelphia 76ers. Ironically, that’s the team that George currently plays for.
Last season was George’s first with the Sixers, and it didn’t go well at all, with him and the team both falling short of expectations. George and the Sixers will look to bounce back in the 2025-26 campaign and take advantage of a core that is built to win now.
