Grizzlies sign Scotty Pippen Jr. on two-year, two-way contract

Scotty Pippen Jr Vanderbilt (cropped) – CC BY-SA

Free agent guard Scotty Pippen Jr. joined the Memphis Grizzlies on a two-year, two-way contract, the player’s agent, Erika Ruiz, confirmed to ESPN on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old player thrived at Vanderbilt from 2019 to 2022, averaging 20.6 points per game in his final two seasons. He went undrafted out of Vanderbilt but signed with the Los Angeles Lakers on a two-way contract for the 2022-23 season.

He mainly played in the G-League’s South Bay Lakers but made six appearances with Los Angeles, averaging 2.3 points per game. At the end of the preseason on October 16, Pippen was waived from the NBA team and was allocated to G-League.

Pippen, the son of Basketball Hall of Famer and six-time NBA champion Scottie Pippen, averaged 18.2 points on 43.9 shooting, 6.4 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 2.8 steals per game in five matches for South Bay this season.

G-League explained that Pippen was technically a free agent, leading the player to sign with the Grizzlies. Adding Pippen to the Grizzlies gives the team more guard depth. The team has been struggling the most in the 2023-23 NBA season as several players sustained injuries.

Grizzlies injury report

The team has nine players listed on their injury report as of Monday — Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson Jr., Marcus Smart, Steven Adams, Santi Aldama, Brandon Clarke, Jake LaRavia and Derrick Rose.

Most of the injured are assigned as point guards. Morant is out for the season due to a shoulder injury, while Smart is dealing with finger injuries. In addition, Bane and Rose are out with a left ankle sprain and a left hamstring strain, respectively. This season leaves fellow two-way player Jacob Gilyard the only healthy point guard on the roster alongside Pippen.

Gilyard signed a two-way contract with the Grizzlies to replace Kenneth Lofton in April 2023. He spent the 2022-23 season with the Grizzlies G-League affiliate Memphis Hustle, averaging 8.3 points, 9.7 assists and 1.9 steals in 31 regular season appearances. He led the league in assists per game.