Jahlil Tripp, a Bed-Stuy native, got
the call about half-hour after the NBA draft ended – the Memphis
Grizzlies signed him to an Exhibit 10 contract.
There, he will have the opportunity to at least make their
developmental G League affiliate team.
Tripp has had plenty of hard times. He missed his junior
season at Brooklyn Collegiate High School after first being hit by a stray
bullet, then breaking his leg.
After transferring to Lincoln, he was told he would get a
fifth year of eligibility, only to be barred from playing by the league.
Tripp had to go to a junior college for a year, before
winding up at the University of the Pacific.
"I've been dealing with adversity in my life all my
life. It's nothing new, it's something that I thrive in and I haven't let any
setbacks disturb me and mess up my path to what I want to do in life, and
that's play basketball at the highest level."
Trip scored 1,000 points in the West Coast Conference and
was named Defensive Player of the Year.
NBA training camps begin on Dec. 1.