After De'Aaron Fox missed the San Antonio Spurs' preseason opener against the Atlanta Hawks, robbing Mitch Johnson of a chance to see his 3-guard lineup firsthand, will he get that opportunity during the regular season? Dylan Harper has high hopes for the Spurs.

After starting alongside Stephon Castle in San Antonio's 123-116 loss to the Hawks, Harper believes the Spurs will have the NBA's best offense this upcoming season.

“We're going to be really hard to guard,” Harper said. “When me and Steph get downhill, Fox has the same ability. I think all three of us can be hard to guard, and there's going to be a whole lot of mismatches on the floor. Playing with each other, we're all unselfish, and we all understand where we're going to get our shots from. And we understand what we all have to do to win. So, it's going to be great.”

Without Spurs' De'Aaron Fox, Dylan Harper led with 16 points on 5-for-7 shooting, including 3-for-5 from deep, four rebounds, four assists, and one steal. Fox was ruled out of the Spurs' preseason opener due to soreness.

Spurs All-Star Victor Wembanyama, who added nine points, six rebounds, and one block, credited Harper with his preseason performance against the Hawks, per San Antonio Express-News' Tom Orsborn.

“That worked out. It's not like we hadn't done it before,” Wembanyama said. “In practice, of course, we worked on it. Yeah, that worked out.”

Article Continues Below

The Spurs should look at the three-guard lineup at some point during the preseason, or we could see Harper replacing Fox as the starter on Opening Night. Fox being a late-game scratch gave Johnson a look at what his team looks like with Harper swapping roles, or he could revert to his starting 5 of last season. Amid his rookie campaign last season, Harper came off the bench in all but four games for the Spurs in 2025-26.

Harper surpassed his 11.8-point season average in the Spurs' preseason opener. Every Spurs starter made at least one 3-pointer as the team finished 14-for-37 from deep. If the second-year guard can find consistency from deep, it's encouraging that the three-guard lineup might work. Despite Fox's subpar performance in last season's Finals, the Spurs remain committed to keeping him in the starting lineup.

However, things could change before the regular season starts. Either way, it's worth a look at the Spurs' 3-guard lineup.