The Los Angeles Lakers grabbed another O’Neill and the son of a former Chicago Bulls legend on Tuesday night.
At least for now.
The Lakers signed Sharif O’Neill and Scotty Pippin Jr. for deals after the NBA draft, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. O’Neill, the son of former Lakers great Shaquille O’Neal, will play with them in the summer league, and Scotty Pippin’s son has agreed to a two-way contract.
O’Neill spent last season at LSU, his second in the program, although he averaged just 2.9 points from the bench in 14 games while dealing with a prolonged leg injury. He started at UCLA but needed open heart surgery in 2019 after being diagnosed with a right abnormal coronary artery.
Although it’s hard to compare him to his father, O’Neill had a few training sessions before the draft and he chose to stay in the draft, although few thought he would go higher than the late second round. While you will have to prove yourself in Las Vegas to win your seat, seeing another O’Neill in any kind of Lakers shirt will certainly be cool.
Pipen will join the Lakers in a bilateral deal that should carry him into the season this fall. Pipen averaged 20.4 points per game last season at Vanderbilt while shining in the SEC, but most expected him to be ignored in the draft. At just 6 feet tall, he is much shorter than his father and less skilled – which is again an incredibly difficult question.
While it may take a lot for any of the players to make the Lakers’ list full-time next season, this vintage-style summer team can be fun to watch.
And, if nothing else, their basketball experience certainly gives both Pipen and O’Neill many advantages.
Another O’Neill will present a Lakers shirt this summer. (Jonathan Bachmann / Getty Images)
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