Montrezl Harrell Dishes Thoughts on Battle With Paul Reed

Just a few weeks before the Philadelphia 76ers fired up their training camp in Charleston, South Carolina, the team made its final signing before traveling by adding the veteran big man Montrezl Harrell.

When Harrell landed a multi-year deal with the Sixers, it was easy to assume that the veteran big would leapfrog the youngsters Paul Reed and Charles Bassey to become Joel Embiid’s primary backup in Philadelphia, considering his experience and familiarity in Doc Rivers’ system.

After a week-long training camp and two preseason games, that might not be the case. According to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer, Paul Reed has garnered most of the playing time in the backup five spot during training camp.

When Embiid missed Monday’s game against the Brooklyn Nets, Paul Reed got the start in his absence, with Harrell coming off the bench. You could assume that was Rivers’ way of simulating a situation where he keeps the second-stringer as the backup no matter what, as he’s done in the past, but Wednesday’s decision to trot out Reed over Harrell behind Embiid threw a wrinkle in that theory.

There’s been a lot of discussion about the backup center battle, and it’s unclear who’s truly in the lead right now. Either way, if you ask Harrell, he’s far from concerned.

“To be honest with you, I don’t think nothing like that, honestly,” said Harrell. “That’s not really up to me. That’s something the coaches gotta get in that room and kinda talk with each other, who’s gonna go here, who’s gonna go there. I’m in my eighth year in this league, so I know what the end comes with. I know how to be a pro. At the end of the day, it is what it is. Simple as that. That’s where I’m at right now.” (via Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire)

Rivers and the Sixers coaching staff might already have their minds made up on the situation. Whether they choose to roll with Reed, Harrell, or a rotation throughout the year, the Sixers seem to be in good shape based on what’s been put on display through two preseason games.

In an average of 19 minutes on the floor, Reed has averaged seven points while draining 55 percent of his shots. He’s collected 11 rebounds and snatched seven steals.

As for Harrell, he’s averaged 14 minutes on the court through two games. While draining 66 percent of his field goal attempts, Harrell has scored 11 points per game. In addition, he’s grabbed eight total rebounds and blocked one shot.

Both bigs have stated a solid case so far. While it seems they are both in a friendly competition with each other, Harrell doesn’t seem the least bit concerned about whether he’s winning the battle or not.

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