2015 NBA Draft: What Will Montrezl Harrell’s Role be on the NBA Level?
Montrezl Harrell was easily one of the most fierce players in the ACC. He is a high octane, high energy player with the ability to attack the offensive and defensive boards.
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When he has his mind made up to dominate in the paint, there are very few players who could keep up with him.
At 6-foot-8, 240 pounds, he plays the power forward position with physicality and athleticism. His 7-foot-3 wingspan helps him play bigger than his 6-foot-8 frame.
This past season, Harrell helped lead the Louisville Cardinals to the Elite Eight averaging 15.7 points and a team high 9.2 rebounds per contest.
His offense is improved since he added a mid-range jumper to his aresenal, but it is not consistent enough for you to truly be able to depend on him as your sole post scoring threat just yet.
He is moreso a guy that can catch lobs on the break or in the half-court offense off pick-and-rolls, as well as get his points off offensive rebounds and put backs.
Defensively, he can be a beast in the paint by being able to deter offensive players from wanting to come in the lane because of his shot blocking ability.
So what is the best role for Montrezl Harrell on the NBA Level? Simply to be a relentless offensive and defensive rebounder while being a furious finisher on the break.
Thanks to a player like Denver Nuggets power forward Kenneth Faried, a 6-foot-8 energy guy with ridiculous leaping abilty and tenacity on the glass is a wanted commodity in the NBA.
Plus Harrell’s energy spills into the defensive end where he has the size and quickness to be able to defend some small forwards and most power forwards.
As the NBA continues to evolve into a positionless, up-tempo game and teams begin to put players on the floor with versatility at multiple spots, players like Harrell are going to become more and more in need because of the fact that they have the speed and athleticism to be able to keep up with multiple types of players at multiple positions.
Montrezl Harrell is the type of player that should be able to get a few contracts in the NBA and contribute to a franchises success immediately .
According to bleacherreport.com, Harrell suffered an ankle injury during a workout with the Milwaukee Bucks, but it is not a serious injury.
Harrell was matched up in the workout with Arkansas big man Bobby Portis, and as you could imagine it was physical.
Billy McKinney on Bobby Portis and Montrezl Harrell going head-to-head in today’s workout: "It was like a round of Mortal Kombat out there"
— Andrew Gruman (@AndrewGruman) June 17, 2015
Montrezl Harrell is going to be able to play in the NBA for a very long time as long as his body holds up. The energy and relentlessness that he plays with on a night-to-night basis is going to be coveted by someone in this draft.
The one thing that he needs to learn quickly in the league is to pace himself.
He can get away with playing high energy in a 35 to 40 game collegiate season, but in order to preserve himself and maintain his energy through the 82 game marathon that is the pros, he is going to maybe have to turn it down just a tad.