How Would Dylan Harper Fit With The Utah Jazz?
Apr 30, 2025, 2:28 PM
Dylan Harper #2 of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images)
(Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Jazz are guaranteed a top-five pick in June’s NBA Draft, and one name they’ll monitor closely is Rutgers guard Dylan Harper.
The Jazz have a 52.1 percent chance of landing one of the top four picks in the draft, and a 47.9 percent chance of selecting fifth.
Related: How Would Cooper Flagg Fit Jazz In Draft?
Dylan Harper Scouting Report
Bio: 19.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.0 assists: .484/.333/.750
Rutgers – Guard – 19 years old on draft night
Strengths: Less than two months out from the 2025 NBA Draft, Harper has emerged as the strong favorite to be selected second behind Duke forward Cooper Flagg.
Standing a reported 6-foot-6, with a 215-pound frame, Harper has prototypical size for a backcourt player in the modern NBA, and showed the ability to play both guard spots in his lone season at Rutgers.
Harper projects as an on-ball guard in the NBA capable of initiating an offense, while also carrying a large scoring load.
Offensively, the guard is at his best getting into the paint off the pick-and-roll. His combination of size, strength, and footwork allows him to overcome average athleticism and finish at a high rate at the rim.
Big guards who want to win… 2025 NBA Draft prospect Dylan Harper talks about his NBA player comparison, Cade Cunningham 👀 🙌 pic.twitter.com/xLGZAQiJpH
— NBA (@NBA) April 8, 2025
Harper made more than two-thirds of his baskets at the rim in college, a success rate traditionally reserved for big men, and did so on a team that didn’t offer him much help in regards to space.
The left-handed guard weaves through defenders by splitting double teams, combining his ballhandling and footwork to find pockets to score easily at the rim.
With a better screen-and-roll big man in the NBA, Harper’s game could really explode at the next level.
Along those lines, Harper’s assist numbers will likely climb in the pros when playing alongside more talented teammates. With his excellent height, natural instincts, and ability to collapse the defense off the dribble, the guard will generate a lot of open looks for other players in an offense.
Related: Ron Harper Says He’d Support Jazz Draft Son, Dylan
As a shooter, Harper is dangerous in catch-and-shoot situations and makes threes when he is open, and when teamed with his 75 percent success rate at the free-throw line, he should be expected to see his percentages climb naturally throughout his career.
Harper won’t compete for any all-defensive teams early in his career, but his combination of steals and blocks, size, and effort should allow him to be at least an average defender, if not better, in the NBA.
Though it wasn’t an obvious strength at Rutgers, Harper had as many games with 10+ free-throw attempts as he did zero (four), and could make a living at the charity stripe as he develops.
Weaknesses: Overall three-point effectiveness will probably determine the high-end ceiling of Harper’s career more than any other single skill.
As an off-the-dribble jump shooter, Harper didn’t find much success in college and was far more dependent on finishing at the rim than might be possible in the NBA.
While his catch-and-shoot numbers lend themselves to Harper improving as a three-point shooter, his ability to knock down shots when defenses give him space in the pick-and-roll, or in late-clock situations when he’s taking self-created shots off the dribble, may be the difference between being merely a good starter in the NBA versus an All-Star.
dylan harper future superstar pic.twitter.com/f0bEol0TBo
— 🇨🇦 (@AmirCrawford_) April 14, 2025
The NBA’s top guards (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, etc) are all excellent finishers, but routinely hit difficult threes off the dribble, which allows them to become unguardable even in the game’s biggest moments.
Harper has not yet proven he can make those shots at a high rate, but it will be key to his high-end development.
Defensively, as the league has moved more towards needing true two-way players at all five positions, especially in the playoffs, Harper will have to show he can be more consistent on that end, even if he has to carry a bigger-than-average offensive load.
How Would Dylan Harper Fit With The Utah Jazz?
Since the departure of Donovan Mitchell, the Jazz have lacked a true offensive engine who can handle both the playmaking and scoring duties of a true number one player on a roster.
Outside of Flagg, Harper projects as the highest-upside multi-faceted weapon in the draft, and one who would instantly provide the Jazz with an identity and order on the offensive end.
The team benefited greatly from having Isaiah Collier on the floor as a true point guard last year, but would only see those benefits grow with the more well-rounded Harper.
Very impressive set up and find from Dylan Harper here pic.twitter.com/hCX1rsO2HZ
— Matt Powers (@DraftPow) April 17, 2025
Though the fruits of their labor have yet to truly shine, the Jazz have strong positional size across the roster between Lauri Markkanen, Walker Kessler, John Collins, Cody Williams, Taylor Hendricks, and Brice Sensabaugh, and adding Harper’s 6-foot-6 frame would only make them bigger.
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Among the Jazz’s young core, Harper should pair well with Kessler as a pick-and-roll duo, while spacing the floor with Markkanen, Sensabaugh, and Hendricks would give the rookie guard plenty of room to operate in the paint.
While Flagg is clearly the class of the 2025 NBA Draft, Harper is one of the best consolation prizes in recent memory and would provide the Jazz with a major staple in their rebuild.
The NBA Draft lottery will be held on May 12.
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Ben Anderson is the Utah Jazz insider for KSL Sports and the co-host of Jake and Ben from 10-12p with Jake Scott on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. Find Ben on Twitter at @BensHoops, on Instagram @BensHoops, or on BlueSky.
