By Tom Orsborn, Staff writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2025-05-14 16:27:05
由生成式人工智能翻译，译文内容可能不准确或不完整，以原文为准。
迪伦·哈珀参加了2025年5月13日星期二在芝加哥举行的NBA篮球选秀联合试训。（美联社照片/Nam Y. Huh）
芝加哥——迪伦·哈珀(Dylan Harper)的父母在他学会爬行的时候就让他接触了篮球。
“当我还是个婴儿的时候，他们就把球放在我手里，”他谈到他的父亲罗恩(Ron)，罗恩在他15年的职业生涯中赢得了五次NBA总冠军，以及他的母亲玛丽亚(Maria)，玛丽亚曾在新奥尔良大学打球，后来成为一名教练，包括在新泽西州的唐·博斯科预备学校执教，那是他儿子的母校。
现年19岁的哈珀将自己对篮球的认识和许多宝贵的经验归功于他的父母，他相信这些经验将使他在NBA中受益匪浅。
“当我年轻的时候，他们总是告诉我做正确的事情，永远不要因为眼前的方便而去做某事，”他在周三的选秀联合试训中说。“这真的帮助了我。”
迪伦·哈珀被广泛认为是仅次于前杜克大学球员库珀·弗拉格(Cooper Flagg)的第二好新秀，他最终可能会加入马刺队，马刺队在周一晚上的选秀乐透中赢得了2025年NBA选秀大会的第二顺位。对于一个重视高素质球员的球队来说，他似乎非常适合这支银黑军团，他的一个罗格斯大学队友也支持这种观点。
“非常健康、谦逊的人，”埃斯·贝利(Ace Bailey)说，他预计在6月25日举行的选秀大会上，他将与哈珀一起成为前四顺位新秀。
“他总是把别人放在第一位，”贝利补充说。“他不是那种因为别人是谁或者来自哪里而贬低别人的人。他总是很谦虚，一直如此。你甚至不会想到他会做他所做的事情。”
这些特质也有助于哈珀很好地融入一支拥有几位与他技能相似的球员的球队。
哈珀身高6英尺4英寸半，体重213磅，是一名即战力后卫，以其进攻风格和作为组织者的能力而闻名，他擅长为自己和队友创造得分机会。这也描述了马刺队的达龙·福克斯(De’Aaron Fox)，这位前萨克拉门托国王队的全明星球员是在2月3日的一笔三方重磅交易中获得的，以及斯蒂芬·卡斯尔(Stephon Castle)，他在选秀大会上以第四顺位被选中后，赢得了上赛季的最佳新秀。
哈珀表示，他可以轻松地与福克斯和卡斯尔并肩作战。马刺队似乎是哈珀的理想下家，特别是在ESPN周二援引联盟消息人士报道称，达拉斯小牛队计划保留第一顺位，并将其用于弗拉格之后。
“NBA真的是一个位置模糊的篮球联盟，所以你可以和一群控球手和一群可以为自己创造机会的人一起打球，但也让其他人为他们创造机会，”哈珀说。“与他们（福克斯和卡斯尔）一起打球会很棒。”
2024年11月30日星期六，在拉斯维加斯举行的NCAA大学篮球比赛上半场，罗格斯大学后卫迪伦·哈珀（2号）投篮，德克萨斯农工大学后卫曼尼·奥巴塞基（35号）和德克萨斯农工大学前锋安德森·加西亚（11号）防守。
哈珀说，与维克多·文班亚马(Victor Wembanyama)分享球场也是如此。
“文班亚马简直就是一个自然界的怪胎，”哈珀说。“他所做的一切都太疯狂了。他身高7英尺6英寸。他覆盖了整个油漆区，所以很难在他面前投篮。他每天都在进步。那会很棒，那会是一种荣幸。”
当被问及哈珀与文班亚马配对的前景时，贝利摇了摇头。文班亚马是2024年最佳新秀，也是上赛季的全明星，马刺队在选秀大会上以第一顺位选中了他。
“哦，天哪，那太棒了，那会很疯狂，”贝利说。“不太好，因为我可能要和他对抗。但看到他们两个在一起会很棒，迪伦的节奏和他的比赛感觉，以及文班的比赛感觉，那会很疯狂。”
当被问及哈珀将为选中他的球队带来什么时，贝利听起来像是在描述卡斯尔。
“一位出色的控球后卫，”贝利说。“我的意思是，你不能加快他的速度。你也不能减慢他的速度。他以自己的节奏打球，做出正确的传球，而且他也知道如何得分。”
这是哈珀欣然接受的描述。当被问及他将自己与哪些现役NBA球员比较时，他说的是底特律的凯德·坎宁安(Cade Cunningham)，洛杉矶快船队的詹姆斯·哈登(James Harden)和俄克拉荷马城队的谢伊·吉尔杰斯-亚历山大(Shai Gilgeous-Alexander)。
“他们都是知道如何控制比赛、控制节奏的大个后卫，”哈珀说。“他们知道什么时候需要得分，什么时候不需要得分。他们知道什么时候给别人触球。我最喜欢他们的一点是，他们知道如何让周围的球队变得更好。”
在唐·博斯科预备学校担任五星级新秀后，哈珀在为猩红骑士队效力的一个赛季中，场均得到19.4分、4.6个篮板、4.0次助攻和1.4次抢断，投篮命中率为48%，三分球命中率为33%，罚球命中率为75%。
尽管他拥有崇高的选秀地位和篮球家庭背景，他的家庭还包括他的哥哥，前罗格斯大学球星和现任底特律活塞队双向后卫/前锋小罗恩·哈珀(Ron Harper Jr.)，但年轻的哈珀——正如贝利强调的那样——有一种谦逊的态度。
“学习将是我的关键，向我的老兵学习，向我的教练学习，向那些以前来过这里的人学习，”他说。
哈珀说，他的父母教给他的另一个宝贵的一课是永远不要认为任何事情都是理所当然的。
“他们告诉我，你永远不能获得优势或领先地位，因为你必须像其他人一样努力工作，而且没有什么会白白送到你手中，”哈珀说。
为了强调这些话，老哈珀与他的儿子分享了他合作过的两位超级巨星的职业道德故事，迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan)在芝加哥公牛队，科比·布莱恩特(Kobe Bryant)在洛杉矶湖人队。
“我听说了他们所付出的所有努力和牺牲，”哈珀说。“只是像他们在早上四点或五点出现在健身房，那时还没有其他人会在健身房里。”
哈珀渴望追随他们的脚步，他说他的目标之一是成为“NBA的传奇人物之一”。
“这是我梦寐以求的事情，”他说。“仅仅是参加联合试训就已经是梦想成真了。我的意思是，谁不想来到这里呢？我正在做每个孩子都梦想的事情。我很幸运，也很荣幸能来到这里。”
Dylan Harper participates at the 2025 NBA basketball Draft Combine in Chicago, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Rutgers guard Dylan Harper (2) shoots on Southern California forward Rashaun Agee (12) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in the first round of the Big Ten Conference tournament in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 12, 2025.
Khaman Maluach, from rear left, and Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper and Tre Johnson participate in the 2025 NBA basketball draft combine in Chicago, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Rutgers’ Dylan Harper (2) tries to score under pressure from Purdue’s Braden Smith (3) in the first half at Mackey Arena on March 4, 2025, in West Lafayette, Indiana.
点击查看原文：Why Dylan Harper is great fit for Spurs with the No. 2 pick in NBA Dra
Why Dylan Harper is great fit for Spurs with the No. 2 pick in NBA Dra
Dylan Harper participates in the 2025 NBA basketball draft combine in Chicago, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
CHICAGO – Dylan Harper’s parents introduced him to basketball about the same time he learned to crawl.
“They put a ball in my hands when I was a baby,” he said of his father, Ron, who won five NBA championships during his 15-year playing career, and his mother, Maria, who played at the University of New Orleans before becoming a coach, including a stint at New Jersey’s Don Bosco Prep, her son’s alma mater.
Now 19, Harper credits his parents for teaching him the sport and a lot of valuable lessons he believes will serve him well in the NBA.
“When I was younger, it was always do the right thing, never do something because it’s convenient for the moment,” he said Wednesday at the draft combine. “That’s really helped me.”
Widely considered the second-best prospect behind Duke-ex Cooper Flagg, Harper could wind up joining the Spurs, who won the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft at the lottery Monday night. For a franchise that values high-character players, he seems a great fit for the Silver & Black, a notion supported by one of his teammates at Rutgers.
“Very wholesome, humble person,” said Ace Bailey, who is expected to join Harper as a top-four pick when the draft is held June 25.
“He always puts others first,” Bailey added. “He’s not that person to belittle somebody just because of who they are or where they come from. He is always humble, always. You wouldn’t even think he does what he does.”
Those traits could also help Harper fit in well on a team that has a couple of players who share his skill set.
A 6-foot-4 ½, 213-pound one-and-done guard know for his attacking style and skills as a playmaker, Harper excels at creating scoring opportunities for himself and his teammates. That also describes the Spurs’ De’Aaron Fox, the former Sacramento Kings All-Star acquired in a blockbuster three-team trade on Feb.3, and Stephon Castle, who won Rookie of the Year last season after going fourth overall in the draft.
Harper suggested he could easily play alongside Fox and Castle. The Spurs seem a likely landing spot for Harper, especially after ESPN, citing league sources, reported Tuesday the Dallas Mavericks plan to keep the No. 1 pick and use it on Flagg.
“The NBA is really positionless basketball, so you could play with a bunch of ball handlers and a bunch of people that could get opportunities for themselves, but let other people get opportunities for them,” Harper said. “It would be great to play with them (Fox and Castle).”
Rutgers guard Dylan Harper (2) shoots against Texas A&M guard Manny Obaseki (35) and Texas A&M forward Andersson Garcia (11) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Las Vegas.
Same goes for sharing the court with Victor Wembanyama, Harper said.
“Victor is just a freak of nature,” Harper said. “Everything he does is crazy. He is 7-6. He covers the whole paint, so it is hard to get a shot up on him. He is just developing every day. It would be great, it would be an honor.”
Bailey shook his head when asked about the prospect of Harper being paired with Wembanyama, the 2024 Rookie of the Year and an All-Star this past season after the Spurs selected him No. 1 overall.
“Oh, God, that would be great, that’d be crazy,” Bailey said. “Not great because I got to play against it probably. But it’d be amazing to watch them two, with Dylan’s pace and his feel for the game, and Wemby with his feel for the game, it would be crazy.”
Bailey sounded like he was describing Castle when asked what Harper will bring to whatever team drafts him.
“A great point guard,” Bailey said. “I mean, you can’t speed him up. You can’t slow him down. He plays at his own pace, makes the right pass and he also knows how to get a bucket too.”
It’s a description Harper embraces. Asked what current NBA players he compares to, he said Detroit’s Cade Cunningham, the Los Angeles Clippers’ James Harden and Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
“They are big guards who know how to control the game, control the pace,” Harper said. “They know when they need to score and when they don’t need to score. They know when to give someone a touch. And the most important thing I like about all of them is they know how to make the team around them a lot better.”
After starring at Don Bosco Prep as a five-star recruit, Harper averaged 19.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.4 steals in his one season with the Scarlet Knights while shooting 48% from the field, 33% from 3-point range and 75% from the free-throw line.
Despite his lofty draft status and background as a member of a basketball family that also includes his brother, former Rutgers star and current Detroit Pistons two-way guard/forward Ron Harper Jr., the younger Harper has – as Bailey stressed – a humble approach.
“Learning is going to be key for me, learning from my vets, learning from my coaches, people that have been there before,” he said.
Another valuable lesson Harper said his parents taught him was to never take anything for granted.
“They taught me you can never get a leg up or a head start because you got to work just like everyone else and that nothing is going to be handed to you,” Harper said.
To underscore those words, the elder Harper shared stories with his son about the work ethics of two superstars he played with, Michael Jordan with the Chicago Bulls and Kobe Bryant with the Los Angeles Lakers.
“I heard about all the hard work and sacrifice they put in,” Harper said. “Just little things like how they were in the gym at four or five in the morning before anyone else would be in the gym.”
Harper is eager to follow in their footsteps, saying one of his goals is to become “one of the NBA legends.”
“This is something I’ve dreamed,” he said. “Just being at the combine has been a dream come true. I mean, who wouldn’t want to be here? I’m doing what every kid dreamed of. I’m just blessed and just honored to be here.”
By Tom Orsborn, Staff writer, via San Antonio Express-News