Inside The Wizards

Wizards Land Top Prospect in Early Projection

The Washington Wizards could potentially have a high pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.

Jeremy Brener

Oct 17, 2024; Piscataway, NJ, USA; Rutgers Scarlet Knights guard Dylan Harper (2) celebrates after scoring in the first half against the St. John's Red Storm at Jersey Mike's Arena. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
Oct 17, 2024; Piscataway, NJ, USA; Rutgers Scarlet Knights guard Dylan Harper (2) celebrates after scoring in the first half against the St. John's Red Storm at Jersey Mike's Arena. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
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The Washington Wizards have angled their team to be one of the league's worst for the season, which means they will have a chance to select one of the best prospects in the very talented 2025 NBA Draft.

Bleacher Report draft analyst Jonathan Wasserman conducted a mock draft just after the start of the NBA regular season and had the Wizards selecting Rutgers guard Dylan Harper with the No. 2 overall pick.

"Rebuilding teams searching for a lead ball-handler will spend a lot of time at Rutgers. Dylan Harper could be the top guard drafted next June thanks to his full-package positional skill set for creation, shotmaking and playmaking," Wasserman writes. "Rutgers also lists Harper at 6'6", 215 pounds (plus a 6'10" wingspan), eye-opening measurements that mirror those of NBA wings. At that size, he's going to generate tons of buzz and highlights with how effectively he uses change of speed/direction, footwork and strength to get to his spots."

Harper, the son of five-time NBA champion and 15-year veteran Ron Harper, was a five-star recruit coming out of high school, and chose to stay home at Rutgers in New Jersey for likely his one collegiate season.

While Duke forward Cooper Flagg is expected to be the No. 1 overall pick, Harper could very well be the next player off the board, especially if he lives up to the expectations that were placed upon him in high school.

Harper will team up with fellow top prospect Ace Bailey to try and bring some notoriety back to Rutgers basketball, a program that has won just one NCAA Tournament game in the last 40 years.

If Harper can bring some new-found success to the program, perhaps he could be a good fit to the plan to try and revitalize the Wizards.

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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

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