If Montrezl Harrell does not want to be a member of the Los Angeles Lakers next season then he will not be a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. Harrell signed a two-year deal with the Lakers last offseason but has a player option that he can utilize this offseason.
While Harrell could simply opt-out of his deal and walk away from the Lakers, he also could work out an agreement to opt into his deal and then be part of a trade. Typically, players will do this as free agents so they can go to a certain team without a ton of cap space (Kevin Durant to Brooklyn, Chris Paul to Houston, etc.).
That would not be the reasoning for Harrell. We broke down the reasons why Harrell could look to opt into his contract earlier this offseason and his agents are going to have to give him a dose of reality; Harrell did not do anything to raise his value in free agency this offseason.
Harrell would just be signing a similar deal for more years, locking himself up somewhere else without getting much of a raise. Instead of doing that, Harrell could opt into the last year, request to be traded somewhere that will play him more, and look to increase his value for next offseason.
A Montrezl Harrell trade would be huge for the Los Angeles Lakers.
This would allow the Los Angeles Lakers to not lose the asset and the cap space for nothing and they could swing a trade for a legitimate upgrade, although it may take the 22nd overall pick in the draft.
The trades vary based on the other tea in the deal and what their M-O is heading into the offseason. One year of Harrell also is not going to warrant the best return, so the Lakers would have to get creative.
Here are three potential trade packages for Montrezl Harrell that would benefit all parties involved.