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Bobby Krivitsky: Ron Harper Jr. recalls finding out he was starting in Game 7 vs. the Sixers from Da’Sean Butler who works closely with him: “I literally found out when I got to the gym. I got out on the court for my shooting time, and Da’Sean Butler told me…I was ready for the moment.”
Bobby Krivitsky: More from Ron Harper Jr. on his contract extension: “For it to be able to happen in a city like this, playing for a team like the Boston Celtics, I’m honored and I’m ready to put the work in.”
Bobby Krivitsky: I asked Ron Harper Jr. about his contract extension with the Celtics being both gratifying and a source of motivation. “It’s just motivation to keep on getting better, to keep on proving them right. So, that’s something that I look forward to doing.”
Bobby Krivitsky: Ron Harper Jr. on his message from the Celtics that came with his contract extension: “Stay on the same path…Whatever it looked like for me in the past, it never mattered. I would come in and I would win the day and I would get better no matter what it looked like. “So, they're expecting me to keep that same mentality and keep that same relentlessness going forward.”
Bobby Krivitsky: Ron Harper Jr. reveals his top-5 NBA players of all-time. It’s a list that includes Steph Curry. He also has his dad’s former teammate, Michael Jordan, ahead of LeBron James.
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Bobby Krivitsky: I asked Ron Harper Jr. about the focus of his offseason training this summer. “Improving my game all across the board…I try to pride myself on being a complete player. So, just being able to work on everything.”
Bobby Krivitsky: Ron Harper Jr. on the Celtics trading Jaylen Brown: “Obviously, sad to see him go. A guy that I've grown close to in my time at the Celtics…A guy that still trusted me when I was still on an Exhibit 10. “So, I remember the message he shared with me, the motivation he's given me, and the advice he's given me. And it sucks to see him go. But you know, this is a business more than anything. So I wish him luck in the future, except when he plays us.”
Brown also unboxed and tried on his No. 7 Sixers jersey on the stream. “I ain’t gonna lie, this is the first-ever jersey in the NBA besides the Boston jersey that I’ve even put on,” Brown said. “Just now, just right now here on chat. I just realized, this is my first time ever in 10 years I’ve been playing in the NBA, wearing another jersey for another team. “It honestly feels weird, you know what I mean? But it looks fire.”
On Friday, Colorado district court judge Charlotte Sweeney ruled that the NCAA could not prevent athletes from using a fifth year of eligibility if they enrolled in college in 2022, even if they had already competed for four years.
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The decision leaves a handful of players who were drafted in the second round of June’s NBA draft with the potential option to return to school. Vanderbilt wing Tyler Nickel (No. 47 overall to the Knicks), Purdue guard Braden Smith (No. 38 by the Bulls), St. John’s guard Dillion Mitchell (No. 40 to the Celtics) and Florida State’s Lajae Jones (No. 54 to the Warriors) are all apparently eligible to play college basketball next year.
Smith will not explore a return to college basketball, a league source confirmed to FOS, but remains unsigned by the Pacers, who acquired him from the Bulls on draft night. The Pacers are close to the first apron and the franchise has historically avoided the luxury tax, which is why it has yet to fill its final roster spot as it seeks a team-friendly contract. If Smith returned to college basketball, the Pacers would retain his NBA rights as long as the team tenders him a contract by Aug. 5. The same goes for Nickel, Mitchell, and Jones with their respective teams.
There's a belief that the Sixers entered the picture only because former Warriors executive Bob Myers helped swing a blockbuster trade for Jaylen Brown on July 1, boosting the supporting cast and luring James to look in their direction. Several days prior, the Boston Celtics called the Warriors about Brown near the draft, league sources said, testing Golden State's temperature about a trade for four first-round picks and another first-round swap in an effort to beef up the Celtics' own offer to Milwaukee for Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Let's talk about the new contract with the Celtics. Four seasons for $56 million, which is €49 million. What does it mean to you beyond the money? What did this recognition express? "Yes, for me, the money wasn't the most important thing at all. The most important thing was knowing that Boston believed in me for another four years. I'll be able to continue calling Boston home for that entire time, without having to look over my shoulder. Without having to worry about the next season. What I wanted or what would happen. There's uncertainty when you're a free agent. It creates certain difficulties in terms of knowing how to manage the year, injuries and everything else, and I didn't want to be thinking about that. It was very good for me and I feel flattered to have that confidence from the front office . "