Dylan Harper Joins Magic Johnson and Larry Bird in Rare Conference Finals Club After Game 1 Heroics
Dylan Harper was supposed to be the second-best rookie in this draft class. He spent Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals reminding everyone that the gap between him and the No. 1 pick is a lot smaller than people thought.
With De’Aaron Fox out and the Spurs facing the defending champion Thunder, the 19-year-old rookie went for 24 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, and 7 steals in San Antonio’s 122-115 double-overtime win. That stat line put him in company nobody expected. He became the first rookie since Magic Johnson in 1980 to post 20-10-5-5 in a playoff game, and the only player since Larry Bird to hit 20 points, 10 boards, 5 assists, and 5 steals in a Conference Finals contest.
The seven steals were the most ever by a rookie in a Conference Finals game. Not the most this decade. Not the most since some random qualifier. Ever.
And Harper wasn’t just stuffing a sheet. He was the reason San Antonio survived. With Fox sidelined by ankle soreness, the Spurs needed someone to handle the ball, guard the perimeter, and create offense in a hostile road environment against the best regular-season team in the league. Harper did all of it.
The defensive numbers are what jump off the page. Seven steals in a Conference Finals game against an offense as disciplined as Oklahoma City’s takes anticipation, length, and the kind of motor that rookies usually save for the regular season. Harper was diving into passing lanes, picking up Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 90 feet, and forcing the kind of turnovers that flipped possessions in critical stretches.
Pair him with Victor Wembanyama, who put up 41 points and 24 rebounds in his own historic night, and the Spurs suddenly look like the team that nobody wants to face. That backcourt-frontcourt combo is going to terrorize the league for the next decade if they stay healthy.
What This Says About the 2025 Draft
Cooper Flagg went No. 1 last June and there’s no reason to second-guess that pick. Flagg has been everything Dallas hoped for. But Harper at No. 2 is shaping up to be the kind of value selection that defines a franchise.
Before this run, the conversation around Harper was about whether his shooting would catch up to the rest of his game. After this run, the conversation is about whether he’s already an All-NBA caliber playmaker hiding inside a rookie body.
Coaches around the league had been telling anyone who would listen that Harper’s feel for the game was on a different level. Game 1 was the loudest proof yet that they weren’t blowing smoke.
What Comes Next
Game 2 is Wednesday night in Oklahoma City and the question becomes whether Fox returns. He’s listed as questionable with the ankle and there’s optimism inside the Spurs organization that he gets back on the floor. If he does, Harper slides into more of an off-ball role.
That should be terrifying for opponents. Harper just showed he can carry a primary playmaking load on the road in the Conference Finals as a rookie. Asking him to play off Fox and Wembanyama should be a much easier ask.
The Spurs got Game 1 on the road. They got a historic performance from Wembanyama. And they got a rookie putting his name next to Magic Johnson and Larry Bird in the same breath. Not a bad way to start a series.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
