The last three years have been a long and bumpy road for Paul Reed to earn a consistent role at the NBA level, or get “out the mud” as BBall Paul himself would say. After faring well as Joel Embiid’s backup last postseason, it was expected that Reed would have first crack at the job coming into this season. However, last September’s signing of Montrezl Harrell altered those plans, as head coach Doc Rivers rode the backup center carousel for a bit before opting to utilize the veteran at the position.
As frustrations mounted with Harrell’s shortcomings on the defensive end, though, Rivers finally made the move much of the fan base had been clamoring for and turned back to Reed in mid-February.