Spurs rookie Dylan Harper isn't enjoying the best statistical season by an NBA rookie. Not by a long shot. But, thanks in part to Stephon Castle and De'Aron Fox – as well as Victor Wembanyama – he is enjoying the most successful season by any standout rookie. By a long shot.
“It's hard to scout us, with three dynamic guards. I think when Fox and Steph start the game, we've got two of the best guards in the NBA,” Harper shared. “And I think when I come off the bench, I think that's just another weapon we have. So, I think it opens the floor for everyone, including for Vic. And I think when Vic has all that pressure on him and two people go to him, it just opens the world for us.”
At 11 points per game, Harper ranks seventh on the team in scoring. Playing 22 minutes per night, the second overall pick of this past summer's draft is seeing the floor significantly less than Castle and Fox. The reigning Rookie of the Year averages 16.6 points in 29.7 minutes, while the two-time NBA All-Star, Fox, is scoring 19 a night in a team-leading 31.6 minutes of action.
“I think that from everywhere we all can score. That's the beauty of this team. We all can dribble the ball,” Harper added, expanding the praise to other teammates.
“We have a bunch of ball handlers and a bunch of scorers. So, every night is going to be a big night,” Harper continued. “Just for us as a collective group, just to come and help out however we can, it's great for us.”
Victor Wembanyama heaps praise on Stephon Castle
Though all are dynamic offensively, Harper, Castle, and Fox each have an aspect of their game they do better than the other two. Fox is the best scorer of the three. Harper may be the best at getting to the rim. And Castle is easily the group's best defender.
“He's understood his role very well,” Wembanyama said. “The level he's playing at is really unseen for a second-year player and how it fits in our game plan.”
Nicknamed “Area 51,” as a nod to their jersey numbers and Wembanyama's ‘Alien' moniker, Wemby and Castle form one of the most lethal defensive combinations in the NBA.
“I know we make it hard, we make it uncomfortable for people to play against us,” Wembanyama said. “That's the goal because a guy has to dribble around one of the best on-ball defenders and then has to go shoot a shot against some of the best rim protectors; it's very tough.”
Dylan Harper soaks in the Spurs' success
While Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel lead the Rookie of the Year discussion, Harper will likely still be playing this spring when they won't.
“It feels great,” Harper said of the Spurs' success. “I think this is the most I've won in a long time. So, just having this winning streak and just building off of that and not taking teams for granted, I think, is a big thing for us.”
Thanks to the former Rutgers star, Fox and Castle, the Spurs are currently seeded second in the West. Their standing is much closer to the Oklahoma City Thunder at the top than they are to the teams behind them.
