Dylan Harper is quickly showing that the Spurs were holding him back

The San Antonio Spurs are still early on in their 3-point guard experiment, but guard Dylan Harper is already proving to be even better than expected. Thus far, Harper is averaging 18.2 points and 5.2 rebounds, and flashing the potential needed for him to become a superstar.

It's clear that all he needed was the opportunity to put up big numbers, and he's finally getting the chance. To the Spurs' credit, coach Mitch Johnson made the surprise decision to start Harper alongside De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle.

In doing so, that has paved the way for Harper to average 31.5 minutes—up from 22.6 minutes per game last season. We are just now getting to see how good he can be with the opportunity.

Dylan Harper is quickly showing that the Spurs were holding him back

If he can continue to average around 18 to 20 points per game, then he could not only establish himself as a frontrunner for Most Improved Player, but he could also help propel the Spurs to greatness.

San Antonio has a unique advantage of having Fox, Castle, and Harper, allowing them to put pressure on defenses by having three guards who can each attack the basket. Defending a team with that ability is tough enough, but having Harper gives San Antonio an air of unpredictability.

Victor Wembanyama is obviously the top priority for defenses, likely followed by Fox and Castle. Even if San Antonio is facing a defense capable of containing those three players, they likely wouldn't have an answer for Harper.

He makes it almost impossible for opposing teams to hide their worst defender. Case and point was in the NBA Finals against the New York Knicks. It didn't ultimately work out in their favor, but Harper feasted against the Knicks, averaging 18 points per game off the bench

Dylan Harper gives the Spurs offense an x-factor

Great teams often only have a couple of above-average perimeter defenders. That gives Harper a chance to exploit mismatches and relentlessly punish defenses.

We've already seen that this far with him being aggressive, attacking the basket when the opportunity presents itself. Even while his shooting has been slow to come around the season, Harper is still living at the rim.

And if and when his jump shot starts falling, he could quickly emerge as the Spurs' second-best player.

It isn't a guarantee that it will happen this season, but his play thus far has proven that he is still only scratching the surface of his incredible potential. His play also proves that the Spurs were holding him back last season, but he is now fully unleashed this year.

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