Dylan Harper’s perfect Spurs role is becoming impossible to ignore

Now that we've seen Dylan Harper on the court, albeit in Summer League action, we have an idea of what he'll look like when the real games start. It should give Spurs fans confidence in his ability to play off the ball because that's exactly how he should be deployed early in his career. He'll get plenty of chances to initiate the offense in a 48-minute game, but that shouldn't be his primary function... yet.

The Spurs should let De'Aaron Fox run the offense

One thing that stood out to me when watching Harper play against the Mavericks and Jazz is that he doesn't have the quickest first step. That's fine because it's a team sport, but De'Aaron Fox can get by guys with his speed alone. Having that skill is a problem for defenses because you force them into a scramble drill as they rotate to cover for the lost defender. That's when the ball-swinging begins, and an open shot is found.

The pick-and-roll can be used to force the same thing to happen, but because of different schemes, you may encounter more resistance. Teams will blitz, double-team, or trap the ball handler coming off the screen, and while any of those plans can be beaten, they can also lead to turnovers if you're not careful.

A rookie will make more mistakes in those scenarios than a skilled vet like Fox. The Spurs have made it clear that they want to win this year. Kelly Olynyk confirmed as much in an interview during the most recent Summer League game.

If this were another rebuilding year, the answer would be different. You could rationalize letting Harper get all the on-ball reps he could, but the teachings will be styled differently than they were for Stephon Castle. A big reason why Castle won Rookie of the Year is that the Spurs kept putting the ball in his hands, giving him a chance to grow through trial-and-error. He had the highest usage rate among rookies by far.

Harper won't be afforded the same luxury, and he shouldn't be. Not because he's incapable, because he is and he'll learn in due time, but he's not a pure point guard like some are making him out to be. He's a combo guard. Let Fox or Castle handle some of the workload, so they can break down defenses.

When Harper catches the ball on the wing, he gets the benefit of attacking what should hopefully be an uneven defense. Making quick decisions will be important. He shot 37% on catch-and-shoot three-point opportunities at Rutgers, but he struggled with pull-up threes. Playing him off-ball plays to his strengths while he works on the other things behind the scenes.

Again, with 48 minutes in a basketball game, he'll have plenty of chances to bring the ball up and run the offense, but that shouldn't be what his primary role is when the games start in October. Take some of that pressure off and let him grow into who he'll be naturally, while the Spurs win games with a former All-NBA player in his prime running the show. It's a win-win for everyone.