{"id":696175,"date":"2026-04-03T16:50:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T16:50:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/696175\/"},"modified":"2026-04-03T16:50:24","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T16:50:24","slug":"spurs-dylan-harper-on-pace-to-pass-lakers-legend-in-nba-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/696175\/","title":{"rendered":"Spurs&#8217; Dylan Harper On Pace to Pass Lakers Legend in NBA History"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\t\t\t<img width=\"780\" height=\"440\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2242800885-e1762209682981.jpg\" class=\"attachment-featured-image size-featured-image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\"   decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>DALLAS, TEXAS &#8211; OCTOBER 22: Dylan Harper #2 of the San Antonio Spurs handles the ball during a game against the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center on October 22, 2025 in Dallas, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Stacy Revere\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p>The NBA\u2019s Rookie of the Year race doesn\u2019t necessarily include <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/nba\/san-antonio-spurs\/\" title=\"San Antonio Spurs\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"213557\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">San Antonio Spurs<\/a> guard Dylan Harper, but that isn\u2019t due to a lack of success.<\/p>\n<p>Being in a situation where he\u2019s coming off the bench, Harper is on a different journey compared to some of the award\u2019s top competitors, such as Kon Knueppel, Cooper Flagg, and VJ Edgecombe.<\/p>\n<p>Still, Harper can finish the season with some notable accomplishments. One of them is surpassing the <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/nba\/los-angeles-lakers\/\" title=\"Los Angeles Lakers\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"213558\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> legend Magic Johnson in NBA history.<\/p>\n<p>via <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/realapp\/status\/2039936754682101899?s=20\" rel=\"nofollow\">Real App on X<\/a>: \u201cDylan Harper is on pace to pass Magic Johnson as the youngest guard in NBA history to average: 10+ PPG, 50%+ FG.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5641393\" class=\"size-inline wp-image-5641393\" data-lazy-load=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2243142549_9a6e17-e1764974012612.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"782\" height=\"439\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-5641393\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">GettySAN ANTONIO, TX \u2013 OCTOBER 26: Dylan Harper #2 of the San Antonio Spurs celebrates after scoring against the <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/nba\/brooklyn-nets\/\" title=\"Brooklyn Nets\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"213560\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Brooklyn Nets<\/a> in first half of a game at Frost Bank Center on October 26, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Cortes\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p>Dylan Harper\u2019s Rookie Season With The Spurs<\/p>\n<p>With the 2025-2026 season winding down, Harper has just two starts under his belt.<\/p>\n<p>However, coming off the bench doesn\u2019t mean he hasn\u2019t been productive. With 22.4 minutes per game, Harper has been making the most of his playing time.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5579060\" class=\"size-inline wp-image-5579060\" data-lazy-load=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2243211456-e1761931118462.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"782\" height=\"439\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-5579060\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">GettySAN ANTONIO, TX \u2013 OCTOBER 26: Egor Demin #8 of the Brooklyn Nets drives on Dylan Harper #2 of the San Antonio Spurs in the first half at Frost Bank Center on October 26, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Cortes\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p>The 19-year-old guard is shooting 50.3% from the field, producing 11.7 points per game. 2.6 of his shots per game are coming from beyond the arc, where he\u2019s averaging 32.7%.<\/p>\n<p>The rookie guard is also producing 3.9 assists per game, along with 3.4 rebounds.<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to scoring for rookies, Harper is in the top 10 in the NBA this season.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5514996\" class=\"size-inline wp-image-5514996\" data-lazy-load=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2222176919-e1759171426222.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"782\" height=\"439\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-5514996\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">GettyNEW YORK, NEW YORK \u2013 JUNE 25: Dylan Harper of the San Antonio Spurs speaks to the media after being drafted second overall during the 2025 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 25, 2025 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mike Lawrie\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p>Spurs\u2019 Top Pick In 2025 Is Panning Out So Far<\/p>\n<p>The Spurs are currently the second-best team in the Western Conference when it comes to the standings. They trail the NBA Champions by fewer than three games.<\/p>\n<p>While the veterans are running the show, Harper has been an excellent member of the supporting cast during his rookie effort.<\/p>\n<p>San Antonio landed some solid luck in the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery. After the <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/nba\/dallas-mavericks\/\" title=\"Dallas Mavericks\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"213559\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Dallas Mavericks<\/a> acquired the No. 1 pick, which expectedly became Cooper Flagg, the Spurs went with the Rutgers star, Dylan Harper.<\/p>\n<p>Soon enough, Harper will get a chance to contend in the NBA Playoffs with the Spurs. Then, he\u2019ll focus on his sophomore effort, when his role will inevitably increase.<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/author\/justingrasso32\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Justin Grasso<\/a> Justin Grasso is an NBA reporter, covering trending league news, transactions, injuries, and player developments. He is a credentialed journalist with nearly a decade of insider access.  <a href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/author\/justingrasso32\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">More about Justin Grasso<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Spurs\n\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty DALLAS, TEXAS &#8211; OCTOBER 22: Dylan Harper #2 of the San Antonio Spurs handles the ball during&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":386706,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3797],"tags":[7,6,969,474,4075,4074,534],"class_list":{"0":"post-696175","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-antonio-spurs","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-nba","10":"tag-san-antonio","11":"tag-san-antonio-spurs","12":"tag-sanantonio","13":"tag-sanantoniospurs","14":"tag-spurs"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116341811847876467","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696175","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=696175"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696175\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/386706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=696175"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=696175"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=696175"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}