Projected as a top-three pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Dylan Harper is cementing his place as one of the most exciting prospects in college basketball. Averaging an impressive 23.8 points per game on 51.1% shooting while making 4.6 assists per game in his first eight games at Rutgers, Dylan has scouts buzzing about his NBA potential. But if he were to make it to the league, there is one team that has lessened chances of seeing the young talent, thanks to his father.

A team in the rebuilding phase like the Jazz often flies under the radar. However, former Chicago Bulls star Ron Harper has turned up the heat, making it clear that his feelings about the Utah-based franchise are anything but neutral. Now, those feelings are sparking debate about his son Dylan Harper’s potential NBA future.

Harper, a key member of the Chicago Bulls’ championship teams during their 1997 and 1998 Finals matchups against the Jazz, recently stirred the pot on social media. When a Jazz fan on X, floated the idea of Dylan Harper being drafted no 3 by Utah, Ron Harper didn’t mince words. “Hell, No” he replied bluntly, making it evident he did not want his son to don the Jazz uniform.

This isn’t the first time Harper has expressed reservations about Utah.

The animosity may stem from his days as a Chicago Bull, where he helped the team defeat the Jazz in back-to-back NBA Finals. Harper was Michael Jordan’s backcourt mate during that era, a role that allowed him a front-row seat to one of the fiercest rivalries of the late ’90s.

Though time has passed, the bitterness seems to linger. Harper once wrote in a post on X that he rejected a trade to the Jazz during his own playing career. His opinion seems to align with another former player, Dallas Mavericks star Derek Harper, who famously declined a trade to Utah in 1997, stating outright that he didn’t want to live there. Now, those personal reservations collide with professional stakes as Harper’s son, Dylan, prepares to enter the NBA.

Dylan Harper to the Jazz: A dream that may never materialize

Dylan’s talent has already captured the imagination of Utah fans, many of whom are eager to see him don a Jazz jersey. The prospect of landing such a transformative player has become a beacon of hope for a franchise in the midst of a challenging rebuild. With a 4-16 record after Sunday’s loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Jazz have sunk to the second-last spot in the Western Conference, putting them on track for a third consecutive top-10 pick.

Recent draft selections Cody Williams (No. 10 in 2024) and Taylor Hendricks (No. 9 in 2023) reflect the franchise’s ongoing rebuilding phase. Adding a player of Dylan Harper’s caliber would undoubtedly bolster their roster, but the elder Harper’s stance raises questions about whether Utah would even be able to keep Dylan long enough to build a roster around him.

The connection between Ron Harper’s history with the Jazz and his current comments is hard to ignore. The 1998 Finals capped a storied rivalry, with Chicago defeating Utah in six games to claim the championship. For Harper, it was a crowning achievement in his second-to-last NBA season.

Despite his public opposition, Harper insists that his son will ultimately make his own choice. “He will make his own choice for sure,” Harper wrote in a previous X post. His acknowledgment suggests that while he has strong opinions, the final decision will rest with Dylan.