On a night that will be remembered as the emergence of NBA royalty’s next generation, Scotty Pippen Jr. didn’t just play basketball; he made a statement. On Thursday, the Milwaukee Bucks were bested by the Memphis Grizzlies (122-99), which is the organization’s fourth consecutive loss. However, we must not forget that another kid of an NBA standout has just entered the league, but it seems like he’s not performing to his full potential. And the fans are keeping a keen eye.

During the Grizzlies’ impressive victory over the Bucks, Pippen Jr. showcased a defensive prowess that would make his Hall of Fame father proud. The young guard held Damian Lillard to just 4 points, 2 rebounds, and 6 assists, a far cry from Dame’s season average of 23.2 points per game.

More impressively, Pippen Jr. contributed 16 points, demonstrating that he’s more than just a defensive specialist. “I took that matchup personally. I grew up watching Dame a lot. Also, one of the coaches [on the Bucks] didn’t believe in me so I definitely wanted to show I could play some defense,” said Pippen Jr. during a post-game interview.

This performance comes at a particularly interesting time in the NBA’s next-generation narrative. While LeBron James’ son Bronny continues to find his footing at the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging just 1 point per game, Pippen Jr. has been steadily climbing the professional ranks.

Pippen Jr.’s season statistics speak of steady improvement. He is averaging 10 points, 6.3 assists, and 2.5 steals per game from the start of this season. These aren’t flashy numbers, but these are the types of solid two-way numbers the team needs to win.

As the NBA continues to evolve, with an increasing emphasis on perimeter defense and versatile guard play, Pippen Jr.’s skill set becomes increasingly valuable. And we can also see that the fans are also happy to see that the HOFer’s son performs well.

Scotty Pippen Jr. earns the respect of the fans

As Pippen Jr locked down one of the NBA’s biggest stars and racked up numbers of his own, fans took to social media to sing his praises. It wasn’t just the impressive defensive stops but the fire he showed throughout the game that had supporters calling him a rising force. The 23-year-old played in the G-League last summer and one fan was quick to point that stating that it’s surprising that he was out of the league even after packing such abilities. “Never understood why he didn’t play last year,” said the fan.

One was even quick to collect that he knew Pippen Jr. would be great since his days at the University of Vanderbilt. “Since Vandy I knew Pippen Jr. was a pro,” wrote the fan. There, the young talent earned 2× First-team All-SEC (2021, 2022) and SEC All-Freshman Team (2020.) As a junior, he averaged 20.4 points, 4.5 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.9 steals per game before announcing his commitment to the 2022 NBA draft.

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Now as mentioned previously, the point guard called out his former coach publicly. The coach can be speculated to be Darwin Ham. Pippen spent his rookie season with the Lakers on a two-way deal when Ham was in his first year as a head coach in L.A. Pippen appeared in just six games with the team, and was then waived right before the start of the 2023-24 season. This event had left a mark on Pippen Jr, and he proved that he’s still very much capable of playing to his fullest.

One fan had a sharp eye to take up on it. “He’s talking about Darwin Ham 😂 SPJ (ironically) took it personal like Jordan used to do in the 90s,” read the comment.

However, even though most of the comments lauded the young point guard, there were few that gave a strong warning to Pippen Jr. with one follower saying, “He is cooked food the next time they play. I’m not taking anything from pippin. But Dam is a hooper and hoopers take games like that personal. Especially having a doughnut,” and another one commenting, “yall just asked for a 40 piece next match up.”

In the end, we can say that his performance against Lillard isn’t just a single-game achievement but it’s a glimpse into what could be a very promising future. While Bronny James will need to find his footing in the professional grounds, seems like one of the NBA icons can already boast about his son.