Cal's Justin Pippen Ready for Chapter 2 in His Hoops Career

Cal sophomore Justin Pippen learned early to choose wisely.

While growing up, he and two older brothers would team up with their father to play 2-on-2 in the backyard. Typically, he’d pair with dad against the two older siblings.

So he and his dad won most of the time?

“All the time,” he confirmed with a smile.

Of course, it didn’t hurt that dad is Scottie Pippen, the Hall of Fame small forward and six-time NBA champion as Michael Jordan’s sidekick with the Chicago Bulls.

As a top-100 prospect at Sierra Canyon High School in Los Angeles County, Justin had a range of college choices. He was recruited by Cal, but also Stanford, Texas A&M, Georgia Tech, among others.

He chose Michigan, where he found a team with a deep roster of backcourt players. The Wolverines posted 27 victories, tied for second in the Big Ten and reached the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA tournament.

But Pippen’s playing time was limited to less than 7 minutes per game and he averaged just 1.6 points as a freshman.

Unhappy with his original decision, he entered the transfer portal and gave Cal a second look.

“They definitely recruited me very highly out of high school,” Pippen said of Cal coach Mark Madsen and his staff. “I was thinking about coming here . . . I made the wrong choice. But now I’ve made the right one.”

A 6-foot-3 guard, Pippen says he is bouncing back from what was a disappointing experience.

“My freshman year was very tough. I was put in a situation I wasn’t really expecting,” he said. “To deal with that, to overcome that has been really (good) for me. I came here, the coaches believed in me, they prepared me for this, gave me a lot of confidence. So right now I feel really good about myself.”

Pippen said his father and older brother Scotty Pippen Jr., now a third-year player with the Memphis Grizzlies, both offered encouragement through the difficult days.

“They would just say keep your head up, your better days are ahead,” he said.

His father certainly proved able to overcome a modest start to his college career. The future seven-time NBA All-Star averaged just 4.3 points as a freshman at Central Arkansas.

Justin Pippen is fired up for the Bears’ season, which tips off on Monday, Nov. 3 against Cal State Bakersfield at Haas Pavilion.

“I know I’m only a sophomore guard, but I want to be a leader, I want to be a voice on the team, a playmaker and a facilitator. And also one of the best defenders on the court,” he said.

Asked what position he will play for the Bears, he said, “I’m a scoring guard. I would say I’m a combo guard, a 1 or 2.”

Madsen has described him as “an outstanding distributor.”

The coaching staff seemingly has been patient with Pippen’s development as a floor leader.

“As soon as I came in here they put the ball in my hands, had me going off screens and just making my own reads,” he said. “Whenever I messed up, they wouldn’t get on me. They would tell me to keep my head up and just worry about the next play.”

The move to Cal is the next play for Justin Pippen and he can’t wait to see how it unfolds.

Cal’s NBA offspring

Justin Pippen is the latest in a series Cal players whose fathers exceled in the NBA:

Justin Pippen (2025-26): The Michigan transfer is the younger son of Hall of Fame small forward Scottie Pippen, a seven-time All-Star and six-time NBA champion as the sidekick of Michael Jordan.

Andrej Stojakovic (2024-25): The son of NBA star Peja Stojakovic played last season in Berkeley after transferring from Stanford. Stojakovic averaged 17.9 points then moved on to Illinois for this season. His dad, a 6-10 forward from Croatia, averaged 17.0 points and was a three-time All-Star during his 13-year NBA career.

Stephon Marbury II (2024-25 to present): The walk-on guard did not see game action in his freshman season at Cal. His father, Stephon Marbury, averaged 19.3 points and was twice an All-Star during 13 seasons in the NBA.

Jules Erving (2017-18 to ’19-20): A walk-on and the son of Hall of Famer Julius “Dr. J” Erving, Jules was scoreless in six games for the Bears.

Nick Kerr (2015-16): Steve Kerr’s son played his senior season as a transfer walk-on, hitting 3 of 6 attempts from 3-point range to total nine points in seven games as a teammate of Jaylen Brown on the most recent Cal team to reach the NCAA tournament. Nick’s father, who has coached the Warriors to four NBA titles, played 15 NBA seasons, including as Michael Jordan’s teammate on championship Chicago Bulls teams, and is the NBA career leader in 3-point accuracy at .454.

Omar Wilkes (2005-06 to 2006-07): The older son of ex-UCLA and NBA standout Jamaal Wilkes, Omar was a two-year starter at guard for the Bears after transferring from Kansas. He averaged 9.9 points his final season. Jamaal was a first-round pick of the Warriors and won a championship and Rookie of the Year honors in his debut NBA season.

Jordan Wilkes (2005-06 to 2008-09): A 7-foot center and the younger brother of Omar, Jordan Wilkes averaged 4.7 points and 4.0 rebounds as a starter in his senior season. Jamaal Wilkes, who won two NCAA crowns under John Wooden as Bill Walton’s UCLA teammate, played 12 NBA seasons, averaging 17.7 points and earned three All-Star bids.

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