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Dylan Harper family tree: Meet Rutgers star's NBA dad, brother and basketball-playing mom

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Original Story by The Sporting News
June 23, 2025
Dylan Harper family tree: Meet Rutgers star's NBA dad, brother and basketball-playing mom

Dylan Harper's path to being a top NBA prospect started from a young age, as the former Rutgers point guard grew up in a family full of basketball players.

Harper, the middle child of three, was a star for the Scarlett Knights in his lone collegiate season, and is looking to follow in his father's footsteps in the NBA. However, Harper gives his mother a lot of credit for his basketball development growing up.

Here's a breakdown of the entire Harper family and their relationship to the game of basketball.

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Dylan Harper's father

Harper's dad is Ron Harper, a former NBA shooting guard who spent 15 years in the league. After going to college at Miami (OH), Harper was drafted as the eighth overall pick in the 1986 draft by the Cavaliers, and he instantly made an impact in the league.

Harper averaged 22.9 points per game as a rookie, finishing second in rookie-of-the-year voting during the 1986-87 season. He was a high-level scorer for Cleveland and the Clippers in his first nine seasons, averaging over 19 points per game from 1986 to 1994.

In the 1994-95 season, Harper signed with the Bulls and transitioned to become a role player for a Chicago team coming off three-straight NBA titles. Harper stayed in Chicago until 1999, helping the Bulls win three more titles despite significantly reducing his scoring, as he only averaged 7.9 points in five years for the Bulls.

Harper closed out his career with the Lakers, winning two more championships to bring his career total to five, despite averaging 6.8 points per game for Los Angeles.

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Dylan Harper's mother

Harper's mother, Maria Pizarro, also played basketball, although not to the level of her ex-husband. Maria played D-I basketball at the University of New Orleans before transitioning to coaching, as she started Ring City basketball in New Jersey, which was initially a girls' club basketball program that became co-ed when her sons began playing the game.

"She was hard but loving," Dylan Harper said, via Seth Davis. "She wasn't just tough on me, either. Everyone got a little bit of it."

In 2008, Maria became the girls' varsity basketball coach at DePaul Catholic High School in Wayne, N.J., where she remained until 2012, when she decided to step away as her sons became more serious about the game. She currently works as an assistant coach for the Don Bosco Prep boys' basketball team in New Jersey, a team that both her sons were on in high school/

MORE: Ranking the 16 biggest busts in NBA Draft history

Dylan Harper's brother

Harper's older brother is Ron Harper Jr., who had a successful college career of his own. Harper Jr. spent four seasons at Rutgers, playing in 121 games in that span, and averaged 12.6 points and 5.1 rebounds in that span. He also played a huge role in Rutgers returning to the NCAA tournament in 2021, ending a 20-year drought.

Harper Jr.'s biggest highlight with Rutgers came in the 2021-22 season, when he hit a buzzer-beater to beat No. 1 Purdue at home.

After college, Harper Jr. went undrafted in the NBA but hasn't been able to find a role at the next level. In his first three seasons, Harper Jr. has played in just 11 total games with the Raptors and Pistons combined, mainly at the G League level.

The two Harper brothers are six years apart in age, but Harper Jr.'s time at Rutgers is a big reason why his brother attended the university. Head coach Steve Pikiell coached both brothers, and his success with Harper Jr. helped him recruit the younger brother.

"I've seen this program make strides in the right direction," Harper Jr. said in 2022, via the Asbury Park Press. "And I always say when I come here, I want to leave knowing that kids from New Jersey think it's cool to go to Rutgers again. I think I'm doing just that."

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Dylan Harper's sister

Mia Harper is the youngest of the Harper siblings, but she is a strong athlete in her own right. However, Mia's sport of choice isn't basketball, but actually dancing, competing for Studio L Dance Co. in Waldwick, N.J.

"It's not like gymnastics," Mia said, via NorthJersey.com. "It's like ballet, and you learn gymnastics styles, but you do have to know ballet to learn how to do everything."

However, Dylan is convinced she'd be a good basketball player if she chose to play the sport.

"She'd be like a 6-foot-2 point guard in high school," Harper said. "Caitlin Clark."

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