Ron Harper Jr. reveals when long-term future with Boston Celtics felt possible

Daniel Donabedian, Celtics WireTue, August 4, 2026 at 6:07 PM UTC

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When Boston Celtics wing Ron Harper Jr. made the first start of his four-year NBA career on Wednesday, February 4, the Green Team had low expectations. Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown were both sidelined against the Houston Rockets, who obliterated the C's earlier in the season, and Boston had just traded away bench guard Internee Simons. With Celtics wing Sam Hauser also out with an injury, that left Harper Jr. with the opportunity of a lifetime—and the odds stacked against him.

Harper Jr. made the most of the lucky break, notching 11 points (on 50 percent shooting) to go along with 9 rebounds in 33 minutes of play. His aggressive rebounding and impressive defense kept him in the game and helped the Celtics capture a 114-93 upset win over the largely healthy Rockets. From then on, Harper Jr. knew he had a shot to stick with the C's.

"The first time I really played meaningful minutes was when I started in Houston," Harper Jr. told Noa Dalzell of CelticsBlog. "It happened all really fast. But I feel like after that game where I started and played all those minutes and I played well, I felt like after that point I could be a real contributor to this team."

Prior to Harper Jr.'s gem in H-Town, the undrafted wing averaged about 4.5 minutes per game. In the wake of his first start, he logged around 13 minutes per outing and even started in Game 7 of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs.

While the Celtics lost that pivotal contest to the Philadelphia 76ers, Harper Jr. proved his worth to Boston's front office and was signed to a contract this offseason worth up to $13.7 million over four years. He stood in front of reporters on Tuesday morning while attending Jr. Celtics Academy summer camp in Brighton, as a true NBA player on a guaranteed contract.

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"I'm really grateful for the opportunity, that they believe in me" Harper Jr. told Bobby Krivitsky of Forbes. "It’s just motivation to keep on getting better, to keep on proving them right. So, that’s something that I look forward to doing.”

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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Ron Harper Jr. reveals when long-term future with Boston Celtics felt possible

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