CHICAGO (AP) — Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper have some explaining to do.
Though the dynamic duo from Rutgers could be the next two players selected assuming the lottery-winning Dallas Mavericks grab Duke star Cooper Flagg with the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft, their lone college season didn't go the way they envisioned. Despite having two of the top prospects, the Scarlet Knights missed the NCAA Tournament.
As Bailey and Harper prepare to take their games to the next level, two big questions hanging over them are: What happened? And why?
"We went through a lot of ups and downs, I feel like," Harper, the son of former NBA star Ron Harper and the brother of former Scarlet Knight Ron Harper Jr., said at the NBA Draft Combine on Wednesday.
"But ultimately, it was just like life ain't gonna be perfect, but every day, you've got to go out there and do your job. Obviously, we didn't have the Cinderella story that everyone thought we were gonna have, but I wouldn't change it for the world. I would do it all over again."
Rutgers came into last season with its sights set high after coach Steve Pikiell transformed a roster that produced a losing record. Bailey and Harper highlighted the greatest recruiting class in the program's history. But instead of a Cinderella story, a nightmare unfolded.
The Scarlet Knights went 15-17 for the second straight season. They finished 11th in the Big Ten at 8-12 and missed the NCAA Tournament for the third year in a row.
Again, that's despite having two players who could be drafted in the top five. Bailey said it’s come up "a couple times" in his meetings with teams.
"It's life. Life happens," Bailey said. "We didn't expect that. We wanted to go farther, but I guess life wanted us (to go) the other way. That happens for a reason."
He said experiencing a season like that could help him adjust to the NBA.
"Adversity, it's gonna happen," Bailey said. "You can't think about that game. You lost, you've got to go to the next game because it's 82 games in a season. It's way more than it was in college, so you're not gonna have much time to sit back and be like 'I lost.' You got to move on, keep playing."
Bailey and Harper can sell teams on their physical skills and ability to make shots.
The 6-foot-10 Bailey can make shots from all over whether they're open or contested, though he has some raw edges as a creator and defender. He averaged 17.6 points and 7.2 rebounds.
The 6-6 Harper has the play-making instincts, not to mention the NBA pedigree. His dad was a high-scoring guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Clippers before becoming a five-time champion as a role player with the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers. Harper averaged 19.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4 assists for Rutgers.
The trip to Chicago — where Ron Harper remains a popular figure — for the Combine was his first since All-Star weekend in 2020. He said his parents recommended he try Harold's Chicken, a local chain, while he's in town. But he's more focused on getting a taste of the NBA.
Harper could wind up teaming with Victor Wembanyama if San Antonio drafts him at No. 2.
"It'd be great to play with them," Harper said. "Victor's just a freak of nature. Everything he does is crazy."
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