The Los Angeles Lakers have become one of the best teams in the NBA at scouting talent in the most unlikely of places. Los Angeles has made a habit out of utilizing the undrafted free agent pool to bring in players with untapped potential they appear to be uniquely qualified to develop.
Unfortunately, for as remarkable as the success of Alex Caruso and Austin Reaves was and is, there's a Scotty Pippen Jr. sized hole in the rotation.
Pippen signed with the Lakers as an undrafted free agent and spent two seasons with their G League affiliate. Unfortunately, the Memphis Grizzlies were quicker to lock him up long-term and have since been direct beneficiaries of his meteoric rise to prominence.
Thankfully for Los Angeles, the Milwaukee Bucks have provided an unexpected gift in a player who could become the next Pippen: Ryan Rollins.
Milwaukee Bucks are rescinding the qualifying offer of promising young guard Ryan Rollins and he will now become an unrestricted free agent, league sources tell me. pic.twitter.com/0U89YAiLcV
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) July 1, 2025
After having to watch Pippen average 10.5 points, 4.5 assists, 3.3 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 1.2 three-point field goals made in Memphis, Los Angeles might have his long-awaited replacement.
Ryan Rollins could be the next Scotty Pippen Jr. for the Lakers
Rollins, 22, showed remarkable signs of improvement with Milwaukee in 2024-25. He played a career-high 56 games in the NBA, starting 19, and quietly emerged as a well-rounded contributor capable of stuffing the stat sheet.
That includes his final 13 appearances in 2024-25, during which he averaged 10.8 points, 3.9 assists, 3.1 rebounds, 1.1 steals, and 1.7 three-point field goals made in just 24.4 minutes per game.
A small sample size isn't enough to justify a large contract, but it does give Los Angeles reason to explore his potential on a low-cost deal. Rollins is a competitive young player with intriguing two-way potential and a growing list of quality NBA performances.
In 2024-25, he scored at least 10 points in 15 different games—only two fewer than Gabe Vincent, who averaged 6.6 more minutes per contest.
The market for Rollins could be somewhat competitive, thus driving his salary slightly above the veteran minimum. If the Lakers can sign him for cheap, however, they'd be bringing in a backup point guard who could develop into Vincent's ideal replacement.
Vincent provides significant two-way value as a 3-and-D guard, of course, but the 29-year-old is entering the final season of his current deal.
As such, the Lakers should be proactive in their attempts to sign a player who has shown promise similar to what Pippen brings to the table. Rollins offers value in every phase of the game and is young enough to be a malleable talent in JJ Redick's player development system.
Per-36 averages of 15.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.8 steals, 0.7 blocks, and 2.2 three-point field goals on .487/.408/.800 shooting may only scratch the surface of the type of player Rollins could become.