Why Scotty Pippen Jr. Believes Vanderbilt Basketball Coach Mark Byington Is Building "Something Special." – Sports Illustrated

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NASHVILLE—-By the time Scotty Pippen Jr. steps in front of the group in the hallway of Belmont’s Crockett Center for Athletic Excellence, the questions in regard to a return are obsolete. Pippen returning to Nashville this late-September week for Memphis Grizzlies training camp marks his third-consecutive year coming back. 
He’s held a basketball camp in this town. He’s been back to Vanderbilt–where he became a legitimate NBA prospect on the back of a three-year career under Jerry Stackhouse in which he was a 20-point per game scorer in his two final seasons. He’s been here in this hallway before, too. 
Pippen has been here, done that. Yet, he can’t help but think about his past when he returns to this place. He can’t help but think of the place that he declares helped him make his dream come true. 
For a few moments of his Tuesday-night media availability, Pippen takes a break from the rundown on his own status entering his fourth season as an NBA player to send out a reminder that he hasn’t forgotten about Vanderbilt. Pippen Jr. still watches. When he does, he’s proud of what he sees. 
“Super surprised,” Pippen said in regard to the level of program Vanderbilt has built since his departure. “It’s amazing to see how fast everything's turned around, all this success that they’ve been having and I'm just super excited to say I went there now. 
So, I continue to support and continue to go back. Me and coach [Byington] still talk over there, even though he wasn't my coach, so it's been really good to see them do this.” 
Byington allowed Pippen to host his basketball camp within the walls of Vanderbilt’s Huber Center a year ago when Pippen brought a number of Stackhouse-era players back to campus for the first time since their careers ended. In between interactions with Pippen, Byington has led the program to two NCAA Tournament berths in his first two seasons at the helm and won 27 games in 2025-26. Under Byington, Vanderbilt has put five players in the NBA Summer League, has gotten one drafted and has one that’s appeared in NBA regular season games. 
Including players on two-way deals, Pippen is one of nine active NBA players to play at Vanderbilt and is coming off his fourth professional season–his third with the Memphis Grizzlies–where he looks to bounce back from an injury-ridden 2025-26. He’ll always remember being Vanderbilt’s go-to guy for a few seasons under Jerry Stackhouse, though.
Pippen was the best player of the five-year Stackhouse tenure, but he’s the first to admit that his career left something to be desired; winning. Pippen was never part of an NCAA Tournament team at Vanderbilt and won a total of 20 games in his first two seasons before taking the program to the NIT in his junior year. As well as anyone, Pippen knows the deficiencies of the program in that era and has witnessed a change. 
Prior to Pippen’s final season at Vanderbilt, he had the option to go to what he describes as any school in the country, but he chose to stay. Pippen Jr. repaid Stackhouse and company for their loyalty by averaging a team-high 20.4 points, 4.5 assists, 1.9 steals and 538 free throws attempted. As a result, Vanderbilt spotlights Pippen as a ‘Dore in the pros at any given opportunity and appears to have no doubt in regard to whether it should welcome him back with open arms. 
Pippen also appears to have no doubt in regard to which program he claims, despite it undergoing a coaching change since his departure. When he goes back, he knows he’ll have reason for optimism. 
“He's definitely doing something special over there,” Pippen said in regard to Byington.
”I know they're putting a lot of money into the program, so it's been good to see.”
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Joey Dwyer is the lead writer on Vanderbilt Commodores On SI. He found his first love in college sports at nearby Lipscomb University and decided to make a career of telling its best stories. He got his start doing a Notre Dame basketball podcast from his basement as a 14-year-old during COVID and has since aimed to make that 14-year-old proud. Dwyer has covered Vanderbilt sports for three years and previously worked for 247 Sports and Rivals. He contributes to Seth Davis' Hoops HQ, Basket Under Review and Mainstreet Nashville.
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