New Los Angeles Lakers recruit Montrezl Harrell made his debut for his new side on Friday. The defending champs took on cross-town rivals, the Los Angeles Clippers in their first preseason outing. This was the first time the reigning Sixth Man of the Year winner faced his former Clippers teammates, but in his mind, it was all business for Harrell.
When asked what type of mindset he had entering the matchup, Harrell explained that he did not consider the game to be an opportunity to exchange pleasantries with his buddies/ex-teammates:
“I came here with the mindset that I had a job to do tonight. I’m here with my team, which is the Los Angeles Lakers,” Harrell said, via Harrison Faigen of Silver Screen & Roll. “This wasn’t a come out, ‘hey, how you guys doing?’ laughing it up. Nah. I had a job, and I have a mindset of what I came here to do.”
Harrell came up big for the Lakers on Friday, finishing with a 13-point, 12-rebound double-double with two assists and two steals in 31 minutes of action. He was one of the Lakers' best players on the evening, with the champs having to face the Clippers without both LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Much has been made about how Harrell turned down the opportunity to sign an extension with the Clippers, and instead, jump the fence to join none other than his former team's most bitter rivals. That seems to be water under the bridge for Harrell now, though, as he aligns his focus on the task at hand, which is to do everything in his power to help the Lakers defend their crown.
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