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Report: Sixers “Engaged with Spurs” About Trading Up to #2 Overall

It’s been pretty slow this week, but we’re getting close enough to the NBA Draft that little bits of information are starting to come out:
Moving up to #2 would be for Rutgers guard Dylan Harper. Cooper Flagg and Harper are the consensus 1/2 picks right now, then you’ve got the Sixers sitting there at three, where opinions start to divert. They can go for V.J. Edgecombe or Ace Bailey (not Ace Frehley). They could go for Kon Knueppel or Tre Johnson.
Dylan Harper is the son of the great Ron Harper. He’s a 6’6″, left-handed combo guard drawing comps to Cade Cunningham and Jalen Brunson. He’s got an incredible offensive skillset and can really do a little bit of everything, from attacking the paint to navigating ball screens, finding seams, etc. Patient and smart player on the offensive end. Not the world’s most amazing shooter or athlete, but here’s a blurb from Kevin O’Connor at Yahoo that paints a clear picture:
If the Spurs keep the second pick and don’t trade out of this position, it seems like Harper will be the pick. Harper is a big-bodied lefty combo guard with NBA blood in his veins, as the son of Ron Harper, who was a 20/5/5 guy before winning five titles as a role player. Like his father, Harper has a high floor with the skill, poise and playmaking instincts to dictate the game at his pace. He isn’t an ideal fit, though, next to De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle because of questions about his jumper. Harper made only 36.8% of his catch-and-shoot 3s and just 28.7% of his dribble jumpers as a Rutgers freshman. Fox and Castle are more interior-focused guards, too, and so is Jeremy Sochan in the frontcourt. How many shaky shooters can the Spurs really put around Victor Wembanyama? No matter what the Spurs are signaling ahead of the draft, I’m not convinced taking Harper is Plan A.
Feels like the Spurs will only move off this pick if they have concerns about fit. The Sixers have Tyrese Maxey and Jared McCain in their backcourt, maybe Quentin Grimes as well. The question is how much they’d have to give up to move from 3 to 2.
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com