{"id":123497,"date":"2025-02-12T17:58:04","date_gmt":"2025-02-12T22:58:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=123497"},"modified":"2025-02-12T17:58:04","modified_gmt":"2025-02-12T22:58:04","slug":"nba-draft-rutgers-basketball-dylan-harper-james-harden","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/02\/12\/nba-draft-rutgers-basketball-dylan-harper-james-harden\/","title":{"rendered":"NBA Draft: Rutgers Basketball Star Gets HOF Pro Comparison"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Rutgers Basketball hasn\u2019t ever had the type of talent they now possess with 2025 NBA prospects <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cbb\/players\/dylan-harper-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Dylan Harper<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cbb\/players\/airious-bailey-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Ace Bailey<\/a>. The Scarlet Knights\u2019 wins don\u2019t reflect that, as they\u2019re currently 12-12; <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2024\/12\/07\/how-rutgers-basketball-can-turn-its-season-around\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">an underwhelming record<\/a>. Nonetheless, to base their NBA projections on their performance for a school with two NCAA Tournament appearances since 1992 would be foolhardy.<\/p>\n<p>So when ESPN draft expert Jonathan Givony says that Harper\u2019s \u201ccombination of size, shot-creation prowess, passing creativity, finishing skill and scoring instincts have drawn comparisons in NBA circles to a young James Harden,\u201d well\u2026<\/p>\n<h2>Rutgers Basketball\u2019s Dylan Harper Receives James Harden Comparison<\/h2>\n<p>Harper\u2019s game can be summarized by these 3 B\u2019s: basketball IQ, ball-handling, and body control.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Dylan Harper&#8217;s combination of size, shot-creation, passing creativity, finishing skill and scoring instincts have drawn comparisons in NBA circles to a young James Harden. The 18-year old will be an exciting addition to the NBA team lucky enough to land his services. <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/XtPCvdoCvY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/XtPCvdoCvY<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DraftExpress\/status\/1889708291590332538?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">February 12, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The New Jersey native is an artist with the ball in his hands. While drawing his Picasso, he\u2019s a constant threat to score and facilitate.<\/p>\n<p>Frankly, this is what\u2019s separated him from Bailey, who entered the season as the more highly-touted prospect. The 6-foot-10 forward\u2019s limitations as a playmaker are often over-exaggerated. Nevertheless, Harper\u2019s been more capable of taking over games.<\/p>\n<p>Both Rutgers cornerstones score at a high level. Yet, Harper can score almost at will because it\u2019s easier for him to break down a defense off-the-dribble. At the same time, he can produce points without having to put the ball in the basket himself.<\/p>\n<p>Honestly, that\u2019s a description can fit a number of players, not just Los Angeles Clippers star <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hardeja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">James Harden<\/a>. However, among guard prospects, Harper\u2019s skillset does bear a real resemblance to Harden\u2019s, especially as a lefty. The 18-year-old <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2024\/12\/17\/nba-draft-dylan-harpers-time-cooper-flagg-not-no-1\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">has been compared<\/a> to Oklahoma City Thunder guard <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/g\/gilgesh01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a> and Detroit Pistons guard <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/c\/cunnica01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cade Cunningham<\/a> as well.<\/p>\n<p>Suffice it to say, there\u2019s worse company than MVP-caliber players \u2014 one of whom is already bound for the Basketball Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n<h3>A Statistical Comparison<\/h3>\n<p>Let\u2019s get the numbers out of the way.<\/p>\n<p>In 2024-25, Harper is averaging 19.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game (21 games). He\u2019s shooting 48.3 percent from the field, 33.7 percent from three, and 74.2 percent from the field. He also has a 28.8 percent usage rate, 35.3 percent three-point attempt rate, 43.4 percent free-throw attempt rate, a 1.87 assist-to-turnover ratio, and .180 win shares per 40 minutes.<\/p>\n<p>Looking at those stats doesn\u2019t give anyone Harper\u2019s full picture but these are important details. He excels at getting to the line as a 6-foot-6 and 220-pound hybrid guard. He isn\u2019t overly fixated on being a facilitator but makes sound decisions. Though he doesn\u2019t have a pristine outside jumper, he\u2019s confident. Last but not least, he can impact a game defensively.<\/p>\n<p>For comparison\u2019s sake, Harden averaged 20.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game at Arizona State (35 games).<\/p>\n<div style=\"left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;\"><iframe style=\"top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/LSpjqgW5FHA?rel=0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>He converted 48.9 percent of his field goal attempts, 35.6 percent of his three-point attempts, and 75.6 percent of his free-throw attempts. Lastly, he had a 32.5 percent usage rate, 36.1 percent three-point attempt rate, 59.7 percent free-throw attempt rate, a 1.25 assist-to-turnover ratio, and .230 win shares per 40 minutes.<\/p>\n<p>Based on just these numbers, Harden was a bit more effective. However, given the overall similarity between his output and Harper\u2019s, there\u2019s a good reason to compare the two. This is particularly true with Harden being listed at 6-foot-5 and 222 pounds leaving college.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a9 Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rutgers Basketball hasn\u2019t ever had the type of talent they now possess with 2025 NBA prospects Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey. The Scarlet Knights\u2019 wins don\u2019t reflect that, as they\u2019re currently 12-12; an underwhelming record. Nonetheless, to base their NBA projections on their performance for a school with two NCAA Tournament appearances since 1992 would [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5008,"featured_media":123503,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[556,1608,773,62,3],"tags":[49399,3965,49668,444,98,1489],"class_list":["post-123497","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba-draft","category-basketball","category-college-basketball","category-nba","category-news","tag-ace-bailey","tag-cade-cunningham","tag-dylan-harper","tag-james-harden","tag-nba-draft","tag-shai-gilgeous-alexander"],"modified_by":"Quenton S Albertie","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123497","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5008"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=123497"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123497\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":123504,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123497\/revisions\/123504"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/123503"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=123497"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=123497"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=123497"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}