Stunning stat proves Harper and Castle are primed to be Parker and Ginobili 2.0

After stellar NBA playoffs showings, San Antonio Spurs guards Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle are looking more and more like legends Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. Both Castle and Harper showed off elite finishing at the rim not seen since prime Parker and Ginobili.

Harper's finishing bordered on historic, with Castle not far behind. In fact, according to NBA analyst Sam Schwartz, Harper had the 3rd-best playoff field goal percentage at the rim among guards since 2000.

His 65.5% within five feet on at least 80 attempts is only behind Donovan Mitchell and Ja Morant, with Castle ranking only slightly behind Harper.

Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle are looking like Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili

If that weren't impressive enough, both Castle and Harper showed signs of improved shooting over the second-half of last season and in the playoffs. If they can hone their 3-point shots and up their shooting volume at the rim, both have the makings of stars.

Of the two, despite both having all-star potential, Harper might be the better prospect. He is a unique combination of brute strength and craftiness. Him being a lefty and 6'5" makes his potential all the more tantalizing.

Expanding on the comp between Parker and Ginobili, Castle is similar to the former, while Harper is obviously similar to Manu. That means that Victor Wembanyama is clearly the Tim Duncan of the group, and that trio has the potential to be every bit as talented as the Big Three.

The Spurs need Castle and Harper to be Parker and Manu 2.0

If all three players live up to their potential and San Antonio is able to retain them, they could absolutely run roughshod over the rest of the NBA. The trio of Wemby, Castle, and Harper differ significantly from the Big Three.

Wembanyama is an elite rim protector like Duncan, but he's more of a stretch five than the big fundamental who dominated in the post. Meanwhile, Parker, like Castle, was an elite finisher and a solid mid-range shooter.

Nevertheless, Castle has Parker beat as both a defender and rebounder. Lastly, Ginobili was arguably more talented than Parker. Unfortunately, injuries prevented him from living up to his full potential and resulted in him coming off the bench.

Harper hopefully won't have those same injury concerns. And while he is currently coming off the bench as well, he could soon join the starting lineup and play a bigger role. Perhaps even being Wemby's co-star. Harper's stellar playoff showing proves that.

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