The hot start to Dylan Harper’s NBA career has just been derailed.

ESPN’s Shams Charania is reporting the Spurs’ rookie guard has suffered a strained left calf and is expected to miss multiple weeks. Harper had an MRI on Monday that revealed the damage. He suffered the injury during San Antonio’s loss to the Suns on Sunday. Harper entered that game off the bench, had 12 points in 11 minutes, then left after appearing to land awkwardly while defending a dunk.

The Spurs selected Harper with the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NBA draft after he finished an excellent freshman season at Rutgers. He is part of an exciting young San Antonio core that is led by Victor Wembanyama, and also features 2025 Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle and 25-year-old guard Devin Vassell. Point guard De’Aaron Fox can be thrown in that mix as well, but the 27-year-old hasn’t played this season due to a hamstring injury.

Dylan Harper’s rookie stats for Spurs

Through six games, Harper has lived up to the hype that surrounded him entering the draft. The 6’5” guard is averaging 14.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game, while shooting 50.0% from the field and 35.7% from three-point range.

Among rookies, Harper is third in scoring behind 76ers guard VJ Edgecombe and Grizzlies guard Cedric Coward. He’s tied for second in assists with Pelicans guard Jeremiah Fears and is behind only Edgecombe.

The son of five-time NBA champion Ron Harper, and the younger brother of Celtics wing Ron Harper Jr., Dylan Harper was a five-star recruit out of Don Bosco Prep in New Jersey. He landed at Rutgers, where he and Ace Bailey formed a phenomenal freshman duo.

In 29 college games, Harper averaged 19.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. That was enough for the Spurs to want to grab him with the second pick in the draft.

Hopefully he can return to the court sooner than later.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Dylan Harper Injury: Spurs Rookie to Miss Multiple Weeks With Calf Strain.

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