Dylan Harper is in position to grab something Cooper Flagg may not get in 2027, and the path runs straight through San Antonio’s title chase.
Harper, the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft behind Flagg, has spent much of the early conversation as the guy who got compared to the bigger name. That dynamic could shift fast now that Harper is starting and logging more than 30 minutes a night. With that kind of role, he has a real shot to make the all-star team and, just as important, help push the Spurs toward a championship this season.
Flagg should be in the all-star mix too, especially with the rash of injuries in the Western Conference. But the bigger team picture is different. The Mavericks likely won’t get anywhere near the playoffs, much less the NBA Finals.
Harper has already shown he can handle the biggest stage. In the NBA Finals against the New York Knicks, he averaged 18 points and 6.4 rebounds per game while coming off the bench. For a 20-year-old to produce like that in the Finals says plenty about his talent, even if Flagg would almost certainly flourish in a similar spot.
What Harper has now, though, is opportunity on a contender. San Antonio needs him, and if he helps the Spurs get back to the NBA Finals and win the title this season, that would tilt the comparison in his direction.
It’s a little ironic that the Spurs nearly landed Flagg before falling just short in the draft lottery. Harper was treated as the consolation prize at the time, but he’s already looking like far more than that.
Flagg has opened the season on a monster tear, and Harper is only now getting the kind of starting role that lets him show his full game. Their careers are just beginning, and the race between them figures to stretch for years.
Flagg could become the face of the Mavericks for the next decade and one of the faces of the league. Harper may never reach that level of stardom.
Even so, he has the ceiling to become a multiple-time all-star and an All-NBA player. If he can tack on a championship with San Antonio this season, that would be a major piece on a resume that is still being written.
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Chet Holmgrens expected absence for 8-10 weeks could also reshape the race for end-of-season honors, removing one of the leagues top defensive challengers from the conversation for a stretch. With San Antonios defense projected to keep improving, Wembanyama suddenly has a clearer path to a second straight Defensive Player of the Year award, even if the season is still young and the standings are far from settled. [Read more 🡒]