BOSTON — Ron Harper Jr. didn’t know he’d be spending the week with the Boston Celtics.
But, the 25-year-old two-way Celtics player hopped on a commercial flight on Sunday to meet the Celtics in Orlando amid their three-game road trip.
It wasn’t smooth sailing; the same flight delays that have plagued the country meant Harper missed the Celtics’ win over the Magic; he ultimately arrived in Orlando after the game ended.
The schedule didn’t let up from there; he ended up traveling with the team to Philadelphia for a Tuesday game against the 76ers, and then back to Boston for a game against the Grizzlies on Wednesday.
Then, on Thursday, he attended a fundraiser for Jaylen Brown’s 7uice Foundation, along with several other Celtics teammates.
“It’s just life as a two-way,” Harper told CelticsBlog.
He’s intimately familiar with the grind.
After going undrafted in 2022, the Rutgers star signed a two-way contract with the Toronto Raptors. Then, in December of 2023, he was waived in the midst of his second two-way contract with the Raptors after suffering a torn labrum in his shoulder.
Season-ending surgery set him back both mentally and physically, and after months of rehab, he ultimately joined the Celtics for Summer League and training camp last fall. Harper spent the first few months of last season with the Maine Celtics and then signed a two-way contract with the Detroit Pistons, his third such NBA contract.
But the Pistons didn’t re-sign him, and in August, Harper returned to the Celtics for a second training camp. After a training camp battle between multiple Exhibit 10 players, the 6’5 guard signed the Celtics’ third two-way contract.
The life of a two-way player
Last week, Harper didn’t know what his week would hold. He didn’t have any insight that a roadtrip was in the cards, nor did he know how long he’d be staying in Boston two nights upon his return.
“You don’t really get much notice, you feel me?” he said. “But every time you get called up, you’re grateful for the opportunity.”
On Wednesday, that opportunity resulted in a 4-minute, 6-point stint with the Celtics, in which he sank both of his three-point attempts in front of a raucous TD Garden crowd.
Before the game, he knew that real minutes were possible, though they only ended up coming with the game out of reach.
“Joe don’t care if you haven’t played in 20 games,” Harper said. “If you go out there, he wants you to produce, and he wants you to compete.”
That stint with the Celtics came after Harper excelled in his first two games in Maine, averaging 28.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.5 steals. In Maine’s second game, he caught fire down the stretch, sinking four threes in the final minutes.
Harper’s shotmaking ability could be what translates most in the NBA; in his senior season, he averaged 15.8 points and shot 39.8% from beyond the arc. Last year in the G-League, he shot 37% from three.
“He’s been great,” Joe Mazzulla said last month. “His professionalism has been great. His basketball IQ has really improved. He’s shooting the ball really well.”
Maine Celtics head coach Phil Pressey — who doubles as a member of the Celtics’ player development staff — is often in Harper’s ear, providing encouragement and motivation.
“Ron Harper goes from playing in the G-League one night, getting 28-30 points, playing 40 minutes, to going to the NBA to not playing at all or playing very little,” Pressey said. “In the G-League, his usage rate is extremely high. Then, he goes to the NBA, and it drops dramatically. You have to be adaptable. So, that’s something that we talk about on a daily basis.”
Part of what makes life easier is that Maine and Boston work in tandem; Harper might learn a new play in the G-League and then have to run it with the Celtics in Boston.
Mazzulla and Pressey work closely together, making the back-and-forth transitions far more seamless.
“The play calls are usually the same, the coverage, terminology, stuff like that,” Harper said. “So, it’s easier for me to get a grasp on it quicker.”
When Harper is in Boston, Mazzulla views him as any other player on the roster.
“He worked hard this preseason and his training camp, and so depending upon the night, he could give us a chance to impact winning just as much as anybody can,” Mazzulla said.
Could Ron Harper be the Celtics’ next development success story?
Plenty of Celtics have their roots in Maine. Jordan Walsh and Neemias Queta — who currently have the best net rating of any two-man lineup in the NBA (minimum 30 mins) — both played together in the G-League two years ago.
Then, there are stories like Luke Kornet’s; Kornet revived his career with the Maine Celtics and is now a critical piece of an excellent San Antonio Spurs team after spending the last few years as a backup center for the Celtics.
Sam Hauser, now playing on a 4-year, $45 million contract, also got his start in Portland after going undrafted in 2021. He credits his time in Maine for his eventual NBA success.
“They put the time in to invest in you, and as long as you reciprocate their investment, and you put in the work every day, they’re gonna give you a chance, and you just have to take advantage of it,” Hauser said. “We have a few guys who’ve shown that you can work your way up, and the G League’s not a bad thing by any means. Honestly, it’s a great thing to go down there and get game reps, game speed, game reads, and all that.”
Upon returning to Boston this week, Harper Jr. reviewed film from his G-League game with his Celtics player development coaches. He’s been working hard on getting better at handling ball pressure: “Playing with the ball in my hands, making the right decision 8 out of 10 times — that’s the goal.”
Earlier Friday morning, he headed up to Portland for the Maine Celtics’ first home game of the season. Sometimes, he makes the drive back and forth. Othertimes, he uses a car service. Harper has a place in Boston and a hotel room in Portland, which makes the uncertain lifestyle more convenient.
Harper tallied 15 points and 12 rebounds in Maine’s Friday night game, a 116-92 win over the Long Island Nets. He’s continued to show promise throughout as one of the team’s most veteran players.
Now, he’s just waiting for a breakthrough moment into the league, the same one so many before him have experienced.
“He’s right there, right?” Pressey said. “He’s knocking on the door.”
