Miami Heat: Montrezl Harrell & Bam Adebayo Pairing Would Push Culture Envelope

The Miami Heat might bring back someone from last season, but if they choose to add another big to pair with Bam, here’s why ‘Trez’ isn’t a bad option.

Other than a max-level player, an offseason priority for the Heat is to find an active body that can compliment Adebayo in the front-court and Harrell completely fits the mold. With an extremely high motor, teams have struggled to limit Harrell’s activity from around the basket, as he’s literally made a career of doing the dirty work.

However, if we compare recent pairings with Bam, the one area that Harrell doesn’t posses is a floor-spacing ability. A career 5-for-60 from the three-point line (0-28 in the last three seasons), that may be something to think about.

In that light, many will find this as a legitimate complaint for a potential pairing between Harrell and Adebayo, especially if you also include the slashing abilities of Butler. Although, if Miami can add a legitimate playmaking point guard, as well as retaining Duncan Robinson, those spacing “issues” become minimal.

This even creates a greater incentive for Bam to further extend his range and become a more capable perimeter shooter. Nonetheless, the defensive impact of Harrell would outweigh any potential offensive struggles that he’d find in Miami.

He adds a nuance of weak-side help in drop coverage, with the length to protect the rim at all costs, giving Adebayo leeway to defend smaller players on the perimeter — which he’s been able to do at an elite level. And while Harrell isn’t the strongest presence on the defensive glass, he fairs well in a system like Miami’s, that is usually very reliant on rebounding as a team.

Regardless of where he’s headed next, the 2019-20 Sixth Man of The Year will be a huge pickup for any team that lands him. There’s winning qualities to his game and he can satisfy a team’s rebounding needs.

For the Heat, the 27 year old just might be what they need to solidify their front-court depth, but also and more importantly, to compete further into in the Eastern Conference. That’s how you, eventually, compete for the title.