While most of you were sleeping, Adrian Wojnarowski announced that free agent forward Montrezl Harrell agreed on a one-year deal to return to the Philadelphia 76ers next season.

Philadelphia 76ers sign Montrezl Harrell to one-year deal

Trust me, I wished I was dreaming or that the Woj account above was simply a burner. I must have checked hundreds of times throughout the night to ensure that what I was reading actually happened.

I regret to inform you that it is true, and Montrezl Harrell will be returning to the Philadelphia 76ers next year on a fully-guaranteed veteran minimum contract. 

Why? I have no fucking clue. 

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In fact, it doesn’t appear that anyone has any clue why Daryl Morey and company would bring back Harrell so I’m not going to pretend that I do. Let’s just talk about what we do know.

Harrell will re-sign with the Sixers on a veteran minimum contract that is fully guaranteed. After signing with the the Sixers last season on a contract that included a player option, Harrell declined his player option in the second year of his deal.

That made sense given the fact that he wasn’t getting much playing time in Philadelphia. 

It was an honorable move and left everyone in Philadelphia happy that Harrell made the decision.

At the time, the Sixers avoided giving Harrell guaranteed money and could now go out and find a big man that could actually backup Joel Embiid to provide more upside to a bench unit that is in desperate need of a rebuild after players like Shake Milton, Jalen McDaniels, Georges Niang and even Dewayne Dedmon all left for new opportunities in free agency.

Harrell’s role with the Sixers last year was basically non-existent halfway through the regular season.

He averaged just 5.6 points in 11.9 minutes per game off the bench behind Joel Embiid and lost pretty much all of his minutes later in the season and in the playoffs to Paul Reed.

This is why bringing Harrell back is so mind boggling. His minutes situation will inevitably get worse with the Sixers this year because they just signed Mo Bamba as a backup center and still have a “strong desire” to bring back Paul Reed. 

The move itself is a telling sign of the market for a player like Harrell.

Again, he opted out of his player option to test free agency and clearly, didn’t get any bites. As a veteran, undersized 6’7” big man who has made little-to-no progression on a midrange jumper let alone a three-point shot to adapt to the modern era of NBA basketball, it’s pretty clear that no other team was looking for his services outside of Daryl Morey and the Philadelphia 76ers. 

Harrell now will receive a small increase in pay because of the NBA salary cap increase and the Sixers will save money against the cap/luxury tax compared to if he exercised his player option.

If this move simply boils down to this organization saving a few bucks by bringing back Harrell on a cheaper deal, I will literally surrender what’s left of my Sixers fandom..

So that’s good. At least the Sixers managed to save some money against the luxury tax, right?

(Sarcasm)

As for Paul Reed, who knows what will happen at this point. Reports indicated that the Sixers still have a “desire to bring back” the young center, who took all off Harrell’s minutes later in the season, but after signing Mo Bamba and bringing back Trezz, it would seem unlikely that the Sixers also carry Reed as yet another center on the roster heading into next season. 

I mean seriously, here’s the Philadelphia 76ers current roster: 

• James Harden
• Jaden Springer
• Patrick Beverley
• Tyrese Maxey
• De’Anthony Melton
• Furkan Korkmaz
• Tobias Harris
• Danuel House Jr
• PJ Tucker
• Montrezl Harrell
• Mo Bamba
• Joel Embiid 

Does Nick Nurse consider Paul Reed to be a power forward? Is that why Harrell is back?

I give up.

Yesterday, Brian Windhorst was on national television saying that Daryl Morey was in the process of “cooking up” something and, well, it now appears that Morey and the Sixers organization aren’t very good in the kitchen because that roster is laughable and pretty much insulting to Sixers fans and the city of Philadelphia.

How does Daryl Morey expect this team to win anything next season with a lineup that features three centers, undersized guards, and Tobias Harris as their only true wing player? 

Honestly, I don’t even know what else to write about the Philadelphia 76ers. The lack of self-awareness and incompetence from this front office is fascinating. This fanbase is so far gone from where it was just a few years ago and for whatever reason, no one wants to acknowledge the fact that this franchise is nothing more than damaged goods, being run into the ground by a front office that doesn’t give a shit.

Hopefully, there is something cooking from Morey and company but at this point, it’s hard to be optimistic.

Welcome to Hell.

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