Antron Pippen and his father, NBA Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen shared the same dream, for him to one day play professional basketball. Earlier in his life Antron was a top college prospect. The unfortunate news is that he has passed away at the age of 33.
Scottie Pippen informed the fans about his son’s death through social media. He did not name a cause of death.
“I’m heartbroken to share that yesterday, I said goodbye to my firstborn son Antron,” Scottie Pippen posted Monday. “The two of us shared a love for basketball and we had countless conversations about the game. Antron suffered from chronic asthma and if he hadn’t had it, I truly believe he would’ve made it to the NBA. He never let that get him down, though — Antron stayed positive and worked hard, and I am so proud of the man that he became.”
There were a lot of high expectations for Antron Pippen. He was a top high school player in the state of Georgia. He played college basketball at South Georgia Tech and Texas A&M International.
“The Jets family was saddened to learn of the death of one of our former players, Antron Pippen,” read a Twitter post from South Georgia Tech’s athletic department.
During his high school years, Antron was one of the top 100 prospects in the country for NCAA and potentially the NBA. Antron knew that being the son of a six-time NBA champion would put a lot of pressure on him to play like his father, but instead of trying to reinvent the wheel he decided to learn and play basketball in the best ways for himself rather than duplicate the playing style of his hall of fame father.
“I’m used to the expectations,” Antron Pippen said to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution as a high school player in 2006. “When I was younger, it bothered me. I was trying to prove to people that I could play. I’m very proud of my father. But I can only be myself.”
Antron Pippen was the oldest of Scottie’s seven children. He was the only child from Scottie’s first marriage to Karen McCollum.
“Please keep his mom, Karen, and all of his family and friends in your thoughts and prayers,” Scottie Pippen wrote. “A kind heart and beautiful soul gone way too soon. I love you, son, rest easy until we meet again.”