Ron Harper Jr could make Motor City Cruise debut against Greensboro Swarm
Motor City Cruise forward Ron Harper Jr could make his debut against the Greensboro Swarm at Wayne State Fieldhouse on Tuesday. Harper signed a two-way contract with the Detroit Pistons last weekend and will spend part of his time with Motor City moving forward. The former Rutgers Scarlet Knights star will add experience, rebounding and a scoring punch to the Cruise after averaging a team-high 22.8 points on 42.5 percent shooting from 3-point range with the Maine Celtics this season.
It hasn't been confirmed yet if Harper will make his Motor City debut against the Swarm but he should be available to play in the coming days. Harper went undrafted in 2022 before signing with the Toronto Raptors and spending time with the Boston Celtics. His tenure in Toronto was cut short after a season-ending injury but Harper was eventually signed by the Celtics in the offseason and bounced back with Maine this year, highlighted by a G-League career-high 32-point performance last week.
Harper was a standout at Rutgers from 2018-2022, earning All-Big Ten honors and helping the Scarlet Knights end a NCAA Tournament drought en route to finishing his career with 1,525 points. The New Jersey native is the son of former Chicago Bulls champion Ron Harper Sr and the older brother of Rutgers star point guard and future NBA Draft lottery pick Dylan Harper. It will be interesting to see Harper get another opportunity to play in the G-League and his debut could come against Greensboro.
Motor City is entering the matchup with a 2-3 regular season record, following a 7-9 finish in the G-League Showcase Cup. Greensboro is coming into the game with a 3-1 regular season record after going 11-5 in the Tip-Off Tournament. Both teams are near the top of the league leaders in scoring as the Cruise currently average 115.4 points and the Swarm put up 113.0 points per game. It should be a competitive game between the Eastern Conference foes but the Swarm are slight favorites prior to tip off.
Greensboro is fueled by former Michigan Wolverines standout Moussa Diabaté, forward Keyontae Johnson, center Reggie Perry and guard KJ Simpson. Diabaté put up 26 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks in his season debut, while Simpson is posting 17.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists in his rookie year. The Cruise are also led by center Tolu Smith and forward Lamar Stevens. Motor City has lost two straight games so it will be important to play well against the Swarm on Tuesday evening.
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