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In a candid revelation, Montrezl Harrell, a former teammate of Paul George on the Los Angeles Clippers, opened up about a heated incident that occurred during the NBA Bubble in 2020. This incident, which saw Harrell threaten to “knock [George] the f**k out,” highlights the intense pressures and emotional strains that players experienced during that unprecedented period.
Harrell's story sheds light on his journey, the challenges he faced, and his complicated relationship with the NBA.
“You get a one-word player profile pretty fast in this league,” he explained, noting that players are often reduced to simplistic labels such as “injury-prone” or “uncoachable.” For Harrell, that label was “baggage.”
Reflecting on his path to the NBA, Harrell highlighted his determination and resilience.
“I bet they don’t talk about the Trezz who learned from Lou Will himself how to be a sixth man. How to be a vet. How to work and work, until eventually you feel like you’re one of the best,” he wrote.
The incident with Paul George occurred during the Clippers' playoff series against the Denver Nuggets. Harrell had returned to the Bubble after the emotional ordeal of losing his grandmother, who had played a pivotal role in his life.
“I shoulda never went back to the Bubble,” Harrell admitted, revealing that he felt mentally unprepared to compete. Nevertheless, he drove himself 12 hours from North Carolina to Orlando, hoping to contribute to his team's success.
During a crucial game against Denver, a miscommunication on defense led to a heated exchange between Harrell and George. Harrell recounted the moment:
“We set up a play. Everybody says they’re switching one through five type shit. Everybody knows coverage. Then in the game, the situation comes. It’s in the pick-and-roll with PG, Jamal Murray, Jokić, and me. Screen comes, I yell, ‘Switch!' We switch it. He still fights over the screen. Jokić slips down the middle of the lane — boom — shoots and gets the points. Doc calls a time-out just like that.”
On the way to the huddle, Harrell confronted George.
“I say, ‘Bro, that’s a switch, P.' He’s like, ‘No, I thought—' And I’m like, ‘Bro, ain’t no ‘I thought.’ I said, ‘It’s a switch, bro. Everybody in this shit knows the coverage but you.' He was like, ‘Hey, who are you talking to?'”
The exchange escalated quickly, with Harrell reaching his boiling point.
“I told P right then and there, in front of coaches and everybody, ‘I will knock you the f**k out, bro. You’re trippin’. You was wrong, bro. You’re WRONG,'” Harrell recalled. Looking back, he admitted that he went too far in the heat of the moment.
“I realize this is a business and you can’t talk like that to the star player. But when you’re going through grief, you only see what’s right in front of you.”
The aftermath of the Bubble season was tumultuous for Harrell. The Clippers' disappointing playoff exit and his confrontation with George led to the team parting ways with him.
“The next summer, the Clippers sent me a text message saying something like, ‘Thank you for everything you did for us … but, we’re going to go in a different direction,'” Harrell shared. Despite being a two-time finalist and a winner of the Sixth Man of the Year award, Harrell did not receive an offer to re-sign with the Clippers.
How Montrezl Harrell's personal life impacted him
Harrell's personal life and struggles have deeply influenced his professional journey. He recounted the impact of his grandmother's death and how it affected him during the Bubble.
“My grandmother was already on life support when I got to North Carolina. And while I was home, it’s like time just stopped for a second. Like, wherever she was, I was with her, just floating … in whatever that space is between life and death,” Harrell wrote.
The decision to pull the plug on her life support was one of the toughest moments of his life, and it haunted him during his time in the Bubble.
In the wake of these experiences, Harrell found himself battling depression and questioning his future in the NBA.
“People don’t understand. I’m a human being. I’m a person outside of this game. When you’re going through a lot, and your means of providing are taken away in the blink of an eye, you start to question yourself,” he confessed.
Despite the setbacks, Harrell remains determined to rebuild his career and leave a lasting legacy.
“This past year opened my eyes. I realized I’m not ready to hang this game up — and I have a lot of game left in me. Having a tough season, blowing out my knee … I can’t accept that ending, man. That can’t be what people remember me by. No way that’s gonna be how Trezz went out.”
We too hope that's not gonna be how Trezz goes out.
