According to sources, the Sixers are releasing center Montrezl Harrell in order to fill up their roster for the regular season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Philadelphia needed to cut its roster to 15 players before opening night from its current 16 players on basic contracts. Harrell was one of 14 Sixers players whose money is completely guaranteed for 2023–2024, but he had knee surgery in August after tearing his right ACL and medial meniscus, making him an apparent release candidate.
The Philadelphia 76ers are waiving center Montrezl Harrell, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Harrell’s ACL/meniscus injury and absence make him the release due to a roster crunch, but he’s aiming to make a return after the All-Star break.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 23, 2023
Harrell averaged 5.6 points and 2.8 rebounds in only 11.9 minutes per game over 57 games last season, which was not a big amount of playing time in Philadelphia’s rotation. The 29-year-old re-signed with the 76ers this summer on a one-year, minimum-wage contract, maybe hoping that the team’s new head coach would pave the way for him to get more playing time.
Harrell won Sixth Man of the Year honors in 2020 after averaging 14.5 PPG and 5.9 RPG in 361 games over the previous five seasons (23.3 MPG).
