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Spurs' Dylan Harper Proves He's Ready for Starting Role
Confirmed
In Short: Entering his second NBA season, Harper feels like a 2002 Tom Brady, ready to take on a larger role despite still being five months shy of his 21st birthday.
Dylan Harper, in his first career playoff start for the San Antonio Spurs, delivered a standout performance in Game 1 of the conference finals against the Thunder, scoring 24 points, grabbing 11 rebounds, and contributing seven steals and six assists over 47 minutes.
Harper's performance was pivotal in the Spurs' double-overtime victory, which came after De'Aaron Fox missed the game due to an ankle injury.
The Spurs' unexpected success with Harper as a starter has put the team in a potentially precarious position for the upcoming 2026-27 season.
Harper's rapid development from a promising rookie to a key player in the playoffs has surprised even the Spurs organization.
Entering his second NBA season, Harper feels like a 2002 Tom Brady, ready to take on a larger role despite still being five months shy of his 21st birthday.
During the NBA Finals, Harper and his teammate Stephon Castle faced a less hostile crowd than expected at Madison Square Garden, where they played their first Finals game in 27 years.
Harper's performance in the Finals was notable, as he dunked on several opponents and even encountered a celebrity fan, actor Michael Rainey Jr., who had previously supported the Knicks.
The Spurs, led by Harper, Victor Wembanyama, and Castle, are the second-youngest team to reach the NBA Finals, defying expectations against the reigning champions, the Thunder.
Despite the team's youth, Harper's leadership and performance have been crucial, with the Spurs holding the lead for 72% of the total minutes played against the Knicks.
Ole Miss filed a breach of contract lawsuit against Harper and another former player, Devin Harper, for nearly $1 million in unpaid buyouts after they followed former coach Lane Kiffin to LSU.
The lawsuit complicates Harper's future, as he still owes Ole Miss about $407,000 from a revenue-sharing agreement he signed before transferring to LSU.
Harper's rapid rise and the legal complications surrounding his college career highlight the challenges and opportunities facing young NBA players.
What this adds
The lawsuit against Harper and Devin Harper adds a layer of complexity to the Spurs' roster planning for the upcoming season.
The Spurs' unexpected success with Harper as a starter has raised questions about their long-term plans for the young star.
What's confirmed
- Ole Miss filed a breach of contract lawsuit against Umanmielen and LSU offensive lineman Devin Harper in July over nearly $1 million in unpaid buyouts owed after both followed former Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin to Baton Rouge in January.
What's still developing
- If the Spurs told you they knew Harper would be this good this soon, they would be lying.
- That is not a suggestion that Harper, who's still five months shy of his 21st birthday, is in line for a Brady-like career, though we can all agree his potential seems virtually limitless.
- Same deal with Harper, who went from an obviously good player with an obviously bright future during his first NBA regular season to something nobody saw coming, at least not this quickly, in his first postseason run with the Spurs.
- This move by Dylan Harper in Game 5 was filthy 😳 (h/t manuginobili/X, bannedroomE/X) Watch Game 6 of Spurs-Timberwolves TOMORROW on @primevideoph at 9:30 AM PHT 🔥 #NBAonPrimeVideoPH pic.twitter.com/FtOju5Su4g All of that was off the bench.
- During the fifth and final game, Harper ran out of the tunnel and spotted one of his favorite actors, Michael Rainey Jr., from the show Power, who’d flown out to San Antonio for the game and had made no secret of his allegiance: “Like, the whole series, he posting Knicks, Knicks, Knicks, ” Harper says.
- Harper had tried the same tactic with Jay-Z, which worked until the rapper started to heckle him.
- “I was dunking on n-ggas with the braids in,” Harper accepts.
- “They made it seem like it was going to be way crazier in there.” At times during the previous series against the Thunder, Castle says, “OKC was way louder than MSG.” He and his Spurs weren’t expected to escape that series.
- But the team—the second-youngest ever to reach the NBA Finals, after the ’77 Trail Blazers—was already an anomaly before it defied expectations against Oklahoma City and attempted to make history against New York.
- “Jordan doesn’t win without Pippen,” says Kirk Goldsberry, who covers the NBA for The Ringer and worked for a time as strategic-research vice president in the Spurs’ front office.
- But after disposing of the reigning champs and back-to-back MVP winner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in Oklahoma City, the Spurs faced a new challenge in the Finals—a swarm of celebrities sitting courtside.
- According to On3 ‘s Ben Garrett of OMSpirit, Harper still owes the university about $407,000 while Umanmielen owes approximately $590,000 after both signed revenue-sharing agreements to remain in Oxford in early January before ultimately hitting the transfer portal and joining Kiffin at LSU.