Chicago Bulls: Son of legend Scottie Pippen declares for NBA draft

Chicago Bulls legend Scottie Pippen may soon have a son playing in the NBA, as Scotty Pippen Jr. announced he is declaring for the 2021 NBA Draft.

Pippen Jr. stated he will be retaining his college eligibility in his statement. He will not be hiring an agent at this point, which allows him to maintain flexibility in the pre-draft process. For now, he clearly has his eyes set on entering the NBA next season.

Over the course of two seasons at Vanderbilt, the six-foot-one guard played in 54 games and displayed a knack for scoring the ball. In his sophomore season that was especially true. Pippen Jr. saw a big jump in production from year one to year two for the Commodores.

In his second collegiate campaign, the younger Pippen averaged 20.8 points, 4.9 assists and 1.8 steals per game. He was a bright spot on a disappointing Vanderbilt team that went 9-16 during the 2020-21 college basketball season.

Pippen Jr. was the 13th ranked high school prospect in California among the 2019 graduating class, according to ESPN.com. He opted to play for Jerry Stackhouse at Vanderbilt over offers from a number of programs.

NBA Draft Room projected him to be a second-round draft selection in either the 2022 or 2023 NBA Draft. It appears Pippen Jr. wants to gauge his NBA interest this year but knows the possibility exists of him returning for his Junior college season.

The Chicago Bulls won’t be picking the first round of the NBA Draft this year unless they get a lot of lottery luck. That will make their second-round selection all the more important.

Could Pippen Jr. end up in Chicago and follow in his father’s footsteps? It’s nothing more than a longshot possibility at this point, but it is fun to imagine.

The Bulls will be looking to add a guard this offseason so never say never.