2015 NBA Draft Recap: Five Potential Second-Round Steals

Jan 10, 2015; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Louisville Cardinals forward Montrezl Harrell (24) and North Carolina Tar Heels forward Brice Johnson (11) fight for the ball in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Montrezl Harrell, PF, Louisville | Houston Rockets, 32nd pick

For most of this past season, Harrell was expected to go in the mid-first round. So when he fell all the way to 32, I’m sure the Rockets front office was excited. He averaged career-highs in points (15.7 ppg), rebounds (9.2) and free-throw percentage (59.7%) for the Louisville Cardinals this past season.

So why did he fall? Was it his height of 6’8″, which would be small for a power forward. Or maybe it was something else. According to Chad Ford, his consistency had something to do with his drop to 32.

"On June 18th, 2015 “After having some of the steadiest draft stock of any player on our Big Board for the last two seasons, Harrell has struggled to get traction the past few months as teams have focused on his lack of elite size and inconsistency at Louisville. “If you’re going to be a little guy playing the 4,” one GM said, “you better play your ass off every possession.” Harrell did at times, but now in workouts he’s learning that has to come every day.”"

Maybe Harrell did take a few plays off at Louisville, but high-energy players with a good nose for the ball aren’t easy to find. The Rockets frontcourt has a lot of bodies and maybe Montrezl won’t get a lot of playing time right away, but when his name is called, he’ll be ready.

I don’t think he’ll be a future star, but I think he has the potential to prove to some teams that he should have been taken in the first round.

Next: Joseph Young