Like the good ol’ days, A Pippen lights up United Center
CHICAGO—Scotty Pippen Jr. already had plenty of fond memories of watching his Hall of Fame father at the United Center. He added one of his own Saturday night.
Pippen, son of former Bulls great Scottie, scored a career-best 30 points, added 10 assists and shot 13 of 16 to lead the Memphis Grizzlies past the Bulls, 142-131.
“It’s a dream come true. It’s crazy to say I put up 30 and 10 in the gym where my dad had played,” he said after scoring 26 points in the first three quarters to help Memphis win its second straight. “It means everything to me and my family. I talked to my dad tonight about coming in here and playing. He just told me to go out there and kill it, so that’s what I tried to do.”
The elder Pippen wasn’t in the building Saturday night but was in Memphis on Nov. 8 when his son finished with 11 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists. It made the father and son the only such duo to each record triple-doubles.
Two-time All-Star Ja Morant’s absence with a hip injury—he missed his eighth straight game—has certainly helped Pippen find his niche during his second season in the NBA. On Saturday, he was effective from the perimeter, in transition and finding space in the paint.
“Scotty Pippen was phenomenal tonight,” Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said.
Nuggets rout Lakers
The younger Pippen started the night averaging 11.6 points and 5.7 assists in the team’s first 17 games.
Memphis led 109-98 after three quarters and broke the game open with an 8-3 run in the opening minutes of the final period.
Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 23 points, and Santi Aldama added 10 points and 10 rebounds for Memphis, which led 64-60 at halftime and outrebounded the Bulls 49-35.
Memphis improved to 5-3 (win-loss) during Ja Morant’s absence.
Wembanyama added nine assists, seven rebounds and three blocks in his return from a three-game absence with a bruised right knee.
Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Bucks survived a career-best 50-point night from LaMelo Ball to beat the visiting Charlotte Hornets, 125-119, and extend their winning streak to four in a row.
In another game, Nikola Jokic had 34 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists to lead the visiting Denver Nuggets over the Los Angeles Lakers, 127-102.
