Doc Rivers on Montrezl Harrell's return: 'No update, no timing'
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 The LA Clippers are almost at full strength, especially now they're getting Lou Williams back in today's game against the Phoenix Suns,
00:05 but they are still missing one key player in Montrezl Harrell.
00:09 Harrell hit the bubble on July 17th for family emergency, which has since evolved to the death of his grandmother.
00:15 Harrell said in a story that he was very close to his grandmother, so he's still rightfully pretty emotionally distraught.
00:21 When asked about a timetable for his return, Doc Rivers mentioned this afternoon that there was none available, saying "no update, no timing."
00:28 Rivers had previously stated, "When he's ready, he'll come back.
00:31 You can't play if you're not right mentally because of the emotional part of it." Despite that statement being three days old,
00:36 that's clearly the situation right now. When Harrell is ready to play again and return,
00:41 Clippers will welcome him with open arms,
00:43 but they aren't ready to force a temporary reunion just yet. As of right now, the Clippers have done a pretty decent job of playing without Harrell.
00:49 The bench obviously doesn't average as many points per game as it once was with him,
00:53 but they nearly beat the Lakers without him, and they crushed New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday.
00:57 The Clippers can defeat the Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks without him in pretty good shape from a seating perspective moving forward.
01:03 At the end of the day, the Clippers do need Montrezl Harrell.
01:06 Sixth Man of the Year candidate this year, and he's averaging close to 19 points per game, along with seven rebounds, almost two assists, one block,
01:12 shooting 50 up the floor, and just under 20 minutes per game.
01:15 A type of production that players can temporarily step up to fix, but it's hard to replace in the long run.
01:21 We wish nothing but the best for Montrezl Harrell and his family, and help his family during this difficult time.
01:27 [BLANK_AUDIO]