‘F***ed up’: Former NBA star’s explosive reveal on 36ers exit… and admission on ‘dark’ times

Former NBA Sixth Man of the Year Montrezl Harrell has opened up exclusively to basketball.com.au about his departure from the Adelaide 36ers, the drug ban stemming from his time in China, and what really happened behind the scenes.

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Harrell spoke with NBL veteran Jason Cadee on the latest episode of Cut to the Jase, opening up for the first time about the situation that led to his departure from the Adelaide 36ers before the season began.

Harrell was released on September 25 after it emerged he had failed an anti-doping test during his time in the CBA while playing for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers.

He explained how he first learned about the suspension – and said it didn’t come directly from the league.

“It wasn’t something that was actually sent to me,” Harrell said.

“I sent the article to my agent and he was like, ‘yeah, I saw it around the same time it came out.’”

Harrell added that the news didn’t impact any of his basketball commitments leading up to signing with Adelaide.

“It didn’t bother anything. It didn’t stop me from playing in Puerto Rico. I didn’t stop playing there because of a positive test in China – I stopped because I had already committed to playing in the Big3.

“That’s all I heard about it. No email, nothing written to me, nobody from China telling me I failed a test. No communication went through to me or my agent.

“We didn’t start dealing with any fallout from China until I got to Australia.”

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Harrell signed with the 36ers in May – a major boost for both the league and fans, given his charisma and emotion on the floor.

But on June 24, the China Anti-Doping Agency (CADA) publicly released the findings, first reported by Hupu News, revealing that Harrell and another player had tested positive for carboxy-THC, a cannabis-related substance.

“The Chinese Basketball Association attaches great importance to this matter and is actively cooperating with the China Anti-Doping Agency,” the CBA said in a statement.

Harrell described how the situation unfolded with the 36ers once the news surfaced, giving credit to general manager Matt Weston for trying to help.

“I give it to Matt. He was adamant throughout the whole thing, trying to figure out what was actually going on.

“If anybody was trying to sort it out, it was him. He did the work to handle it or at least understand what was going to happen.

“But when it got to the point where he saw the people he knew couldn’t do anything about it… they kicked me.”

Montrezl Harrell during his time with the 36ers. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

Harrell said the ending is what hurt most.

“This is the thing that rubbed me wrong,” he said.

“You send my agent a termination letter and give me a time period on the same day saying I have to sign it – and if I don’t, you’re just going to terminate my contract.

“Y’all had everything I had, and y’all taught me and made me feel love for the game of basketball again when I was in a real dark place. That will never change.

“But the way I was done on the way out, that’s f****d up.”

Harrell is still serving this three month suspension handed down by CHINADA (China Anti-Doping Agency) which will conclude on February 4th, 2026.