Former Charlotte Hornets ahead Montrezl Harrell pleaded responsible to a single depend of misdemeanor marijuana possession on Wednesday, avoiding felony costs within the case that started with a site visitors cease in Kentucky. Underneath the phrases of the plea deal, Harrell was given a 30-day conditional jail time period, probated for 12 months. If he completes his year-long probation with out additional authorized hassle, he won’t need to spend the 30-day sentence behind bars, Yahoo Sports activities author and NBA analyst Chris Haynes revealed in a tweet on Wednesday.
Harrell turned an NBA free agent earlier this yr after ending the 2021-2022 basketball season with the Charlotte Hornets. With the destiny of the Kentucky marijuana cost now settled, he turns into a prospect of curiosity for a number of groups within the league, which have been much less more likely to signal the veteran participant whereas he was in authorized peril.
Harrell Arrested in Kentucky in Could
Harrell was pulled over by a state trooper for following too intently behind the car in entrance of him on the morning of Could 12 whereas he was driving a rented 2020 Honda Pilot southbound on I-75. In a police report cited by the Charlotte Observer, Trooper Jesse Owens wrote that after stopping Harrell’s car in Madison County, Kentucky, he “noticed” the odor of marijuana.
The quotation additionally alleged that Harrell “admitted to being in possession of marijuana and produced a small quantity from his sweatpants.” Legislation enforcement officers then searched the car Harrell was driving. Through the search, the trooper found “three kilos of marijuana in vacuum sealed baggage” in a backpack that was discovered on the again seat of the car, in line with the site visitors quotation.
Harrell was initially charged with trafficking lower than 5 kilos of marijuana. Underneath Kentucky state legislation, possession of greater than eight ounces however lower than 5 kilos of marijuana is assessed as a Class D felony for the primary offense. These convicted of the cost are topic to a sentence of 1 to 5 years behind bars and a effective starting from $1,000 to $10,000. A choose in Richmond, Kentucky permitted amended costs within the case on Wednesday, leading to Harrell’s responsible plea to misdemeanor marijuana possession and the suspended sentence and probation.
8-Yr NBA Veteran
Harrell, a local of North Carolina, performed eight seasons with the NBA, turning into a free agent on the finish of final season. He performed NCAA Division 1 school basketball for the College of Louisville Cardinals in Kentucky, the place he averaged 11.6 factors, 6.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocked photographs per recreation. As a freshman, he performed on the Cardinals’ 2013 nationwide championship staff, though the NCAA later stripped the title from the staff title for violations of league guidelines.
Harrell was chosen by the Houston Rockets within the second spherical of the 2015 NBA draft, the league’s thirty second decide total that yr. On September 19, 2015, he signed a three-year contract with the Rockets and made his NBA debut with the staff within the opening recreation of the season towards the Denver Nuggets, scoring eight factors and flattening three rebounds. Throughout his rookie season, he was assigned to the Rockets D-league affiliate the Rio Valley Grande Vipers a number of occasions.
In June 2017, the Los Angeles Clippers traded Chris Paul to the Rockets, buying Harrell, Patrick Beverley, Sam Dekker, Darrun Hilliard, DeAndre Liggins, Lou Williams, Kyle Wiltjer and a 2018 Houston first-round draft decide within the transaction. In September 2020, Harrell was named the NBA Sixth Man of the Yr, an award given by the league for the season’s greatest bench participant. That season, the Clippers went to the playoffs, shedding in seven video games towards the Nuggets. Harrell averaged 10.5 factors and a pair of.9 rebounds per recreation within the playoffs which noticed the Nuggets advance after beginning the collection down three video games to at least one.
Harrell signed with the Los Angeles Lakers on November 22, 2020, making his debut with the staff the next month and logging 17 factors, 10 rebounds and three assists towards the Los Angeles Clippers, his former staff and Lakers’ crosstown rival. In August 2021, Harrell was traded to the Washington Wizards as a part of a deal for level guard Russell Westbrook. In February 2022, he was traded to the Charlotte Hornets, scoring 15 factors and 6 rebounds in his staff debut on February 11. He turned a free agent on the finish of the 2021-2022 season.