Ron Harper's son Dylan Harper responds to Malika Andrews’ heartfelt congratulatory message after major career decision

Rutgers star Dylan Harper appeared on Monday's episode of "NBA Today" with a special announcement to make. On national TV, the son of five-time NBA champion Ron Harper made it known that he was declaring for the 2025 NBA Draft.

Shortly after the announcement, "NBA Today" host Malika Andrews went on Instagram to give a shoutout to her guest for the day:

"Congratulations on declaring for the NBA Draft, @dylharpp!" Andrews posted.

In gratitude, Harper shared Andrews' IG story and captioned it with folded hands emojis:

Dylan Harper expresses gratitude for Malika Andrews' kind words on Instagram. Credit: Harper/IG

Even before the 6-foot-6 guard officially threw his name into the hat, various mock drafts had him going second overall. Kevin O'Connor of Yahoo! Sports pointed out that Harper had many desirable traits that his father, a former teammate of Michael Jordan in the Chicago Bulls' late 90s three-peat, once possessed:

"Like his father, Harper has a high-floor with the skill, poise, and playmaking instincts to dictate the game at his pace," O'Connor wrote.

Thanks to Harper's pedigree, he has been surrounded by all-time great his entire life. In his "NBA Today" appearance, Harper told a story about his brother Ron Jr. receiving advice from the late Kobe Bryant — advice that the younger Harper would also come to contemplate:

"I was, like, a fly on the wall, but he told my brother, 'Just keep shooting the ball. We're going to worry about passing later,'" Dylan Harper recalled. [Timestamp - 2:19]

To his credit, Harper managed to contribute well on the playmaking side aside from pouring in the buckets during his lone season in Rutgers. This season, Harper averaged 19.4 points and 4.0 assists in 29 games.

Dylan Harper on being drafted alongside Rutgers teammate: "It would be a blessing"

Dylan Harper is not the only Rutgers star projected to go early in this year's draft. His 6-foot-10 teammate Ace Bailey is a potential lottery pick as well, with some mock drafts predicting that the two Rutgers players will both be picked in the top three.

In his appearance on "NBA Today," Harper expressed his excitement at the prospect of being selected along with Bailey in the same draft class:

"I've known him since sophomore year. It's never a dull moment with him," Harper said of Bailey. "It would just be a blessing, amazing, to know all the hard work he put in, just to see him and his family happy." [Timestamp - 3:27]

If all goes according to the plan, Harper and Bailey will be shaking hands with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver just minutes apart from each other.