A San Antonio teammate may have let something slip about Dylan Harper after their season-ending loss.
The Spurs were eliminated from title contention on Saturday night with a 94-90 defeat at the hands of the New York Knicks in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. San Antonio lost a third straight game in front of their home crowd at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas, ending their hopes of winning their first NBA title since 2014.
After the game, Spurs swingman Devin Vassell was speaking with reporters. Vassell was asked about Spurs teammate Dylan Harper, who had a magnificent performance in the postseason, and responded with an interesting revelation.
“He was upset with playing time and different roles that he was in,” said Vassell of Harper at one point.
Devin Vassell on Dylan Harper:
— BrickCenter (@BrickCenter_) June 14, 2026
"He was upset with playing time and different roles that he was in.” pic.twitter.com/6nAXEme1qH
Harper, the 20-year-old rookie guard, was not expected to have a big role for the Spurs this season behind guards De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle in the backcourt. But Harper ended up developing into perhaps San Antonio’s single most consistent and reliable player throughout their Finals run, averaging 14.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game during the postseason. That included seven straight games scoring in double figures to end the playoffs, capped off by 21 points in Game 4 of the NBA Finals and 25 points in the decisive Game 5.
Rookie players generally tend to have a hard time earning the trust of their head coaches, especially at as difficult of a position as point guard and on an NBA Finals team like the Spurs were. But Harper, who was a bench player all throughout the year, certainly proved he was up to the task. This is not the first time either that we have gotten an indication that Harper has been unhappy with the state of affairs in San Antonio.
