PISCATAWAY, N.J. - Rutgers men's basketball
Ron Harper Jr. is once again on the watch list for the Julius Erving Award given to the best small forward in the country.
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced the 20 watch list members for the 2022 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award on Wednesday.
Harper Jr. was on list last season and was a top-five finalist after averaging 14.9 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists. Harper Jr. was a key contributor to Head Coach
Steve Pikiell's team that won it's first NCAA tournament game since 1983.
Harper Jr., the 6-foot-6 senior forward from Franklin Lakes, New Jersey is looking forward to building on the momentum from the historic season for the Scarlet Knights.
"The season didn't end the way we wanted it to last year, but we learned a lot of great things to keep the momentum running," Harper Jr. said at Rutgers local media day on Friday.
"We want to be national champions. We want to be Big Ten champions. We want to go above and beyond what people expect us to do."
Named after the 1993 Hall of Famer and 16-year professional basketball player Julius Erving, the annual honor in its eighth year recognizes the top small forwards in Division I men's college basketball. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates.
College basketball fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies in each of the three rounds. In late January, the watch list of 20 players for the 2022 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award will be narrowed to 10 and then in late February to just 5. In March the five finalists will be presented to Mr. Erving and the Hall of Fame's selection committee where a winner will be selected.
The winner of the 2022 Julius Erving Award will be presented on a to be determined date, along with the other four members of the Men's Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Bob Cousy Point Guard Award, Jerry West Shooting Guard Award, the Karl Malone Power Forward Award and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center Award, in addition to the Women's Starting Five.
Previous winners of the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award include
Corey Kispert, Gonzaga (2021),
Saddiq Bey, Villanova (2020),
Rui Hachimura, Gonzaga (2019),
Mikal Bridges, Villanova (2018),
Josh Hart, Villanova (2017),
Denzel Valentine, Michigan State (2016) and
Stanley Johnson, Arizona (2015).
Rutgers fans are encouraged to vote for Harper Jr. when Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live on Friday, October 22.
The full group of recipients on the watch list for the award is listed below:
2022 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award Candidates*
| Marcus Bagley |
Arizona St. |
| Matt Mayer |
Baylor |
| Kendall Brown |
Baylor |
| Jabari Walker |
Colorado |
| Hyunjung Lee |
Davidson |
| AJ Griffin |
Duke |
| Matthew Cleveland |
Florida State |
| Jalen Wilson |
Kansas |
| Lucas Williamson |
Loyola-Chicago |
| Emoni Bates |
Memphis |
| Caleb Houstan |
Michigan |
| Justice Sueing |
Ohio State |
| Ron Harper Jr. |
Rutgers |
| Julian Champagnie |
St. John's |
| Harrison Ingram |
Stanford |
| Timmy Allen |
Texas |
| Kevin Obanor |
Texas Tech |
| Jaime Jaquez |
UCLA |
| Patrick Baldwin Jr. |
UW-Milwaukee |
| Jermaine Samuels |
Villanova |
