Basketball Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen announced the death of his firstborn son, Antron, on Monday (April 19) via Twitter.
Antron, 33, was the eldest of Pippen's eight children and the only child shared with his ex-wife Karen McCollum.
The legendary NBA forward revealed his son suffered from chronic asthma throughout his life, but did not confirm Antron's cause of death.
"I’m heartbroken to share that yesterday, I said goodbye to my firstborn son Antron. The two of us shared a love for basketball and we had countless conversations about the game," Pippen tweeted along with photos of himself and his son. "Antron suffered from chronic asthma and if he hadn’t had it, I truly believe he would've made it to the NBA. He never let that get him down, though—Antron stayed positive and worked hard, and I am so proud of the man that he became.
"Please keep his mom, Karen, and all of his family and friends in your thoughts and prayers. A kind heart and beautiful soul gone way too soon. I love you, son, rest easy until we meet again."
Antron Pippen played college basketball at Texas A&M International University prior to signing with the World Basketball Association, according to a Marie Claire article on Scottie Pippen published in January.
The article also reports Antron played for a local basketball team and worked as a machine technician at a lab in Atlanta at the time of publication.
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