Summary

After winning Sixth Man of the Year in '19-'20, I'm sure Harrell thought he was in for a big payday that summer. Unfortunately for Harrell, he struggled mightily in the Orlando Bubble, and ended up settling for a 2-year $19 million contract with the Lakers. It wasn't just that Harrell struggled, it was that his known deficiencies really seemed to expose themselves in the playoffs when the games mattered most.

 

At center, Harrell's lack of rim protection and overall defensive ability makes it difficult for his team to be solid on defense. He can be attacked in pick-and-roll, and when matchups become more important in the playoffs teams can go at him relentlessly in that regard. At 6'8", Harrell is undersized for a center, and isn't exactly Draymond Green (pretty much nobody is, except for Draymond himself) when it comes to having the positional awareness and defensive IQ that could make up for that lack of size. He also has never had good defensive rebounding numbers.

 

All that being said, Harrell is a very good offensive player. He rolls hard to the rim, but also has good feel for timing on the roll and knowing how to be in the right pocket to receive passes out of the pick-and-roll. He has really nice touch around the rim, and even has a floater game. He's improved his passing out of the roll, as he's able to hit the corner when the weakside drops down. He also is a good offensive rebounder, finishing in the 65% percentile or better each of the last four seasons, per Cleaning the Glass.

 

Harrell certainly has value, and can be a starting center for some teams, but he may not be someone you want in your closing lineup when the games matter most.

 

Cap Considerations

Harrell has a $9.7 million player option for next season, and if he declines that option he will be an unrestricted free agent with a $11.1 million cap hold and Non-Bird Rights.

 

If Harrell opts for free agency, the Lakers will be somewhat limited in their means of re-signing him. Since they will only have his Non-Bird Rights, the most they could offer him using the Non-Bird Exception is a contract starting at $11.1 million. This should be enough to re-sign Harrell, but since the Lakers will have limited resources to replace Harrell if he leaves, he may be able to use that as leverage to get the full amount allowed under the Non-Bird Exception.

 

If Harrell opts out, he would most likely demand a starting salary of more than the full $9.5 million Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception, which means only teams with cap space will be able to sign him. It's not out of the realm of possibility though for him to opt out and once again receive the full MLE. If he wants more than that from an over-the-cap team, sign-and-trade options can be explored.