Unproven rookie guard named San Antonio Spurs' playoff X-factor

Unproven rookie guard named San Antonio Spurs' playoff X-factor originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

If the San Antonio Spurs are going to go on a deep playoff run, they'll need contributions from up and down the roster.

Obviously, MVP candidate Victor Wembanyama will do a lot of the heavy lifting for San Antonio, but he'll need help. That's where rookie guard Dylan Harper comes in.

Dylan Harper named Spurs' playoff X-factor

After promising first regular season, Harper will need to step his game up for postseason play, and the degree to which he is able to do so could go a long way towards determining how far the Spurs will be able to advance.

As a result, Harper was recently named San Antonio's playoff X-factor by Kevin O'Connor of Yahoo Sports.

"Well, as of late Harper is elite at shooting. Over his last 32 games, he shot 45.6% from 3, and granted it was on a low volume, it’s an incredibly impressive development for him. His shot looks fluid, and he’s even shooting a better percentage from the line and from midrange too," O'Connor wrote.

"So all indicators are looking positive for Harper, which is what makes him the X-factor: Wemby was a 29-minute-per-game guy during the season. He didn't play over 40 minutes once. Who's going to help fill the gaps when Wemby is on the bench? A lot of the time, it’s going to have to be Harper. And he looks capable."

The word "unproven" being in the headline of this article isn't meant on a diss on Harper at all. It's simply a fact. As a rookie, Harper has never played in a playoff game before, so by definition he's unproven.