After entering the NCAA transfer portal two weeks ago, Justin Pippen has officially flipped from Michigan to Cal, he tells On3’s Joe Tipton. The Golden Bears were among the schools that extended an offer to Pippen before he committed to the Wolverines. Their prior interest and Pippen growing up in Southern California, where he attended Sierra Canyon with Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James, put Cal high on the list of potential destinations for the Klutch Sports client.
Cal Lands Justin Pippen; CBB Transfer With Hall Of Fame Pedigree
A son of Hall of Fame forward Scottie Pippen and brother of Memphis Grizzlies point guard Scotty Pippen Jr., the 6-foot-3 guard 1.6 points and 0.6 assists in 6.7 minutes per game as a true freshman in 2024-25. He started the season off putting his defensive talents on display.
Michigan freshman Justin Pippen has started to see some mins and has taken full advantage of them defensively. In 21 mins of total play he has a blk, a stl, a couple of offensive fouls drawn, and a handful of other nice defensive possessions that won’t shown up in the box score. pic.twitter.com/KKdPMRI9cL
— Rising Ballers Network (@dylan_lutey) November 19, 2024
In terms of production, his best outing came against Purdue Fort Wayne in a non-conference matchup on Dec. 22. In 19 minutes, he recorded 10 points, four rebounds, and two assists, shooting 4-8 from the field and 2-4 from 3. He followed that performance with a 7-point outing against Western Kentucky in which he went 2-4 from 3.
Breakout Incoming?
Notably, Pippen isn’t the only player on the Golden Bears’ roster whose father played in the NBA. Cal junior Andrej Stojakovic, the son of former NBA All-Star Peja Stojakovic, is on the roster as well. In 2024, Stojakovic transferred from Stanford. The 2025 All-ACC Tournament selection then averaged a career-high 17.9 points per game, more than doubling his average from his freshman season (7.8 points per game).
Pippen may not have quite the same breakout as Stojakovic. Nevertheless, he’s likely to get more opportunities than he did in Ann Arbor. That’s even with the Golden Bears landing two other backcourt players in the transfer portal: Virginia point guard Dai Dai Ames and Campbell wing Nolan Dorsey. Connecticut guard Aidan Mahaney, a two-time All-WCC selection, is on their radar as well (per The Daily Californian reporter Joaquin Ruiz).
Pippen’s primary competition, at least as far as transfers, could be Dorsey. In 2024-25, the 6-foot-5 senior averaged 9.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game. He also knocked down 36.3 percent of his 3-point attempts. It’s worth mentioning that in Mahaney’s time with St. Mary’s, the California native averaged 13.9 points per game and converted 37.5 percent of his 3s.
Ames, 6-foot-1, averaged 8.7 points per game and shot 39.7 percent from 3 in 2024-25. Next season, he’ll likely help Cal replace Jeremiah Wilkinson. Wilkinson, who’s also 6-foot-1, averaged 15.1 points per game as a true freshman in 2024-25. He’ll now play for Georgia, where he attended the Metro Atlanta-based McEachern and The Skill Factory.
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