Dylan Harper arrives at long last to further family and Rutgers legacies in what could be a season to remember

Dylan Harper now follows in older brother’s footsteps at Rutgers, hoping to bring Scarlet Knights to similar heights Ron Harper, Jr. did over his four years on the banks. (Photo by Rutgers Men’s Basketball)

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — He has only been on campus for roughly four months, but elicits the same reaction as John, Paul, George or Ringo would have in 1960s Liverpool, or New York for their first appearance on American soil.

Dylan Harper is not a Beatle, of course, but with his New Jersey roots and famous — at least on this campus — last name, may as well be. And that could have been said long before he rose to the third-ranked freshman in the nation.

Harper literally could have gone anywhere coming out of Don Bosco Prep, where his brother, Ron, Jr., starred for four years before signing with Steve Pikiell and Rutgers in 2018. A half-dozen years later, Dylan spurned suitors the likes of Indiana, Duke and Kansas to continue the family legacy on the banks. While Ron gave valuable advice regarding Pikiell and the support he and his staff would give his younger brother, the decision to come to Piscataway was basketball-motivated, says Dylan.

“For me, it was never really about basketball,” he reiterated. “It was about where I could go and where I could become a better man, and I think Pike and the rest of the staff are going to help me do that. I think for us, my family, we’ve all kind of been trailblazers. We’ve always worked to get what we’ve got. Seeing what Ron had to go through here his four years, they were obviously not very good when he got here, and then you look at them now, they were a March Madness team. I’m just trying to bring that culture back. I watched him go through the journey, all the ups and downs. Me and him were in the gym every day, basically, before he left. So him knowing I’m gonna take it where he left off, I’m gonna keep going with it.”

“(Ron told me) just to take everything in, always have open ears, always listen. The coaches know what’s best for you on and off the court, so just listen and not take anything for granted. He said, ‘you’re gonna get a great coach, a great coaching staff that’s gonna love you, care for you on and off the court.’”

Harper’s development may be more accelerated than what Pikiell is accustomed to, by virtue of his sheer talent. In his 19-year head coaching career, the former Jim Calhoun assistant has still yet to hear one of his players’ names called at the NBA Draft, but his newest phenom — and by extension, fellow freshman Ace Bailey, the second-ranked freshman in this year’s class — have gone a long way toward not only changing that, but also improving the games of their teammates as well.

“Dylan sees the floor like no one I’ve had at that point guard position,” Pikiell proclaimed. “He’s 6-foot-7 too, throwing passes. Last year, we had the smallest backcourt in the Big Ten, and now we probably have the biggest backcourt in the Big Ten. He’s the No. 1 point guard in the country, so giving him the basketball is an easy decision. He’s a late-game guy, he’s a winner and he’s not afraid of the moment. I can move him around, too, that’s what I like. His size gives you some tremendous versatility and we could post him up as a big guard, we could move him off the ball, we can do a lot of things with him.”

His likely backcourt partner, who has already been the recipient of numerous passes that will surely wow NBA scouts during the season, concurred.

“It complements me a lot,” said Jeremiah Williams, who will play more off the ball as he blends his fifth-year senior experience with Harper’s precocious on-ball game. “I like to think I’m a good off-ball cutter, I could attack closeouts, catch and shoot threes. I think it’ll help me a lot, open up a lot of opportunities for myself.”

“He’s a very high IQ player, so he sees everything,” Bailey added. “The lobs, back doors, coming off curls, things like that.”

And in typical point guard fashion, Harper is already quick to deflect the attention to those around him. Bailey, his classmate with whom he had been connected through assistant coach Brandin Knight, has already left an impression on his likely fellow lottery pick.

“He knows my game, I know his game,” Harper said. “He’ll go back door, I’m gonna throw it up. I’ll go back door, he’s gonna pass it. We just know. The camaraderie we both have together is just special. Honestly, he’s just a pro. The way he gets off his shot, you just see flashes of Paul George, Kevin Durant, people like that. Just knowing I’ve got someone like that on my team, it’s just like you know what you’re gonna get from him every night.”

“I tell the guys: When I’ve got the ball, I’m gonna find you regardless. I might be a scorer, but I’m gonna find you guys all the time.”

The effect of Harper, as well as Bailey, signing with the Scarlet Knights propelled several experienced transfers to Rutgers through the portal, each of whom having waited for someone of this magnitude to perform with. Now, all 12 scholarship players are ready to let it out and let it in. And upon his arrival on the heels of a 15-17 campaign last season, the movement Rutgers needs is on Harper’s young shoulders as he leads the effort to take a sad song and make it better.

“It’s surreal,” Harper said of the moment now meeting his fate. “The guys that came before us, that team — Ron, Geo Baker, Caleb McConnell, Cliff (Omoruyi), Mawot (Mag), people like that — just watching them play, I always had that look in my eye like, I want to be here one day. I want to play on this court one day. Now, having the opportunity to play and just knowing that I can make something happen here, something great for Rutgers Nation, it’s just special.”