Harper Jr. gets pro ‘feet wet’
LAS VEGAS — It became a reality on Saturday: Ron Harper Jr. is an NBA player. The son of the five-time NBA champion made his debut at the Las Vegas Summer League, realizing a lifelong dream that seemed unlikely for a good portion of his life.
“It felt good to go out there and get my feet wet,” the 6-foot-6 Harper said after scoring seven points and adding five rebounds and two steals for the Raptors in a 97-77 victory over the 76ers on Saturday. “You got to go out there work the nerves out for sure. It’s your first NBA action in front of the world. I felt like I played well.”
There were some early jitters for Harper. The Franklin Lakes, N.J., native, who is on a two-way contract with Toronto, didn’t have many touches early on, and turned the ball over in transition.
He got his first points in the second quarter after following his own miss and getting to the free-throw line. He sank his first shot from the field in the third quarter, a left-corner 3-pointer, then worked around a defender nicely a few possessions later for a bank shot.
Raptors summer league coach Trevor Gleeson thought Harper was affected by nerves early, but improved as the game went on. The Raptors had a scrimmage on Thursday, and Gleeson said Harper was their best player that day.
“I’m definitely confident I belong,” Harper said. “I know I belong here.”
For Harper to even be in this position is an accomplishment in itself. He was a lightly regarded three-star recruit coming out of Don Bosco Prep in New Jersey, and now finds himself in the NBA. He had a famous last name, but little hype behind him. At Rutgers, under coach Steve Pikiell, he methodically emerged as one of the better players in the Big Ten.
His fourth and final year at Rutgers was his best. He produced career-highs in points (15.8), assists (1.9), 3-point shooting (39.8) and free-throw percentage (79.5). He led the Scarlet Knights to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since 1974-75, and won the Haggerty Award, given to the area’s top local player, Rutgers’ first player to garner that honor since Quincy Douby in 2006.
Harper had been hoping to get drafted, but even though he wasn’t chosen, he ended up with a franchise known for development.
“I really feel I fit well with the organization,” he said. “We’ve been working with them for a couple of weeks now and it’s been nothing but positive things.”