76ers' Montrezl Harrell Mentors Paul Reed as Roles Rotate

Before the 2022-2023 NBA season tipped off, Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers made it clear that the backup center minutes wouldn’t be issued to just one player. Instead, the head coach would utilize different players depending on the situation.

While PJ Tucker would get some looks for a small-ball situation, the Sixers primarily look to the former Sixth Man of the Year Montrezl Harrell and the former NBA G League MVP Paul Reed to take up the minutes behind Embiid.

Following the preseason, Rivers evidently rolled with Harrell as the primary backup revealing that the veteran’s success in the preseason earned him a steady role off the bench to begin the year. Through the Sixers’ first nine games, Harrell averaged ten minutes, while Reed averaged under five minutes on the floor, failing to see the court in three games.

When Sixers center Joel Embiid went out for a three-game stretch between October 31 and November 4, Reed saw a slight increase in playing time. When the All-Star returned, Reed saw the court for nearly ten per minutes per game through a six-game stretch.

While the third-year veteran didn’t get the nod to start over Harrell when Embiid missed a handful of games between November 22 and November 27, Reed’s ten points and ten rebounds per game while draining 73 percent of his shots from the field earned him backup minutes when the two-time MVP runner up recovered from a mid-foot sprain.

Reed averaged 12 minutes on the floor behind Embiid through a four-game stretch, but it became evident that Rivers was sliding back over to Harrell during Philadelphia’s double-overtime win against the Los Angeles Lakers nearly two weeks ago.

Harrell and Reed split playing time in the December 9 matchup against Los Angeles, with the former’s playing time coming in the second half. Since that game, Harrell’s taken up the primary backup center minutes, with Rivers confirming the nine-year veteran is a part of the rotation for now.

“Just [Montrezl]’s play,” said Rivers when asked about issuing Harrell minutes over Reed. “You know, I thought Paul was struggling. I think that was clear. And Trezl had been struggling before that. I’d love it at some point, and it’ll happen, where they’re both playing great. That’ll be good. That will be a good thing because maybe you can use them together or one guy against one team and one guy against another team. That hasn’t happened yet. So, right now, it’s Trezl.”

Reed’s mentioned in the past that he enjoys sharing the court with Harrell, but he understands there are only so many minutes to go around, especially when the team is healthy. And while he’s a competitive young veteran that wants to have a steady role, Reed knows playing time is not guaranteed right now, and all he can do at the moment is remain focused, work hard, and see the day his patience pays off.

“You got to handle it like a professional,” said the former second-round pick. “I understand I got areas I need to improve on. I ain’t tripping. I just know I got to get better. I’ve been putting in the work every day. I know it’s gonna pay off.”

As for Harrell, who’s in the same position as Reed, he’s been doing all he can to produce for Philadelphia while helping out his younger teammate. After working closely with Harrell for the last few months, Reed acknowledged how helpful Harrell’s been.

“He’s been in the league way more years than me, I try to learn as much as I can from him,” Reed said of Harrell. “I’ve been learning from him since he’s been here. I guess you can say he’s kind of like a mentor to me.”

After Monday night’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors, Harrell discussed his role in helping Reed out as the backup center position continues to change.

“That’s the same situation I’m in because we never know, right? I’m in that same position, some nights I’m playing, some nights he’s playing,” said Harrell. “It’s really just about coming in and making sure he’s ready. That’s kind of how I approach these games, and I’m really just trying to make sure that he stays ready and prepared as a young player. He has a lot of time in this league, me and him are in the same agency, so we hold conversations and things like that. It’s really just about making sure that his mental is right. When it comes time for him to play and when his name is called, I think he’ll be ready, and he’ll go out and produce like he’s been doing.”

Reed’s spent roughly six total minutes on the court over the last five games. With Harrell getting the nod to play behind Embiid, the former second-rounder is once again waiting patiently for his next opportunity. In the meantime, he’s focused on doing all he can to improve.

“Be more consistent, finish, be a better finisher,” said Reed, discussing what improvements he feels he has to make. “Just be consistent on the defensive end as well. Just doing what I can do, rebound, block shots, and then just like the defensive rotations.”

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.