As one would go in to a basketball gym looking for a Chipman, some might be surprised to find two men standing in front of them: Head Coach Bob Chipman and starting forward and son, Bobby Chipman.

With a dad as a head coach, one might think a lot of pressure is on young Bobby to succeed. He admits, there are more than average, but notes that there is a difference between Coach Chipman and dad.

However, to understand Bobby now, one must look at his life growing up.

As young Chipman grew up, he always remembered being at a gym. Most might assume basketball was involved, but they would be surprised to hear Bobby talking about volleyball.

“My sister was an amazing volleyball player,” said Chipman. “I remember going and watching all of her high school games, then even going to K-State to watch her college games.”

On the contrary, Bobby did spend quite a bit of his time in the gym shooting hoops, as well. He always remembered being with the Washburn team, traveling with them, eating team meals, sitting on the end of the bench, and just hanging out with them.

“Basketball was a big part of me growing up,” said Chipman. “Other than school, basketball was really it.”

Bobby started learning the game of basketball at a very early age, and after learning, never wanted to leave the gym. He remembers going to his dad’s camps at ages 4 or 5 and developed a lot earlier than most kids did.

Life took a negative flip for Bobby growing up. Most remember that awkward phase through middle school and maybe high school; Bobby looks back at this phase not so fondly.

“Everyone else was getting bigger, stronger taller, and I was 5’8 140 pounds as a freshman,” said Chipman. “Let’s just say it was a goofy stage of my life.”

But eventually, Bobby grew out of this stage and caught up with everyone else. He got onto an AAU team the summer before Senior year and says this is where he really developed his game.

Bobby, playing at Washburn Rural remembers going on a major winning streak his Senior year and knocking off the number one teams in the state, Hayden and Highland Park, who both were on nearly 40 game winning streaks.

Not only was Bobby successful on the court, but he maintained strong academic standards. After maintaining a 4.0 GPA all through high school, he was accepted into the National Honor Society. This was a big accomplishment for him.

Another important stage for any senior is choosing what college to attend. After visiting several different colleges and hearing several scholarship invitations, Bobby realized something.

“Ultimately, I knew I was going to go to Washburn and play for my dad,” said Chipman.

College life did not change a whole lot for Bobby as he maintained focus on two priorities, basketball and academics.

His academic life has consisted of receiving several academic scholarships, including a MARCO business leadership scholarship. As assumed, leadership is a big deal to Bobby and he is deeply involved in the Leadership Institute.

One factor that has taken up young Chipman’s attention has been his relationship with girlfriend Caysie Beetley. With the many dates and hang out sessions he spends with her, he realizes that other than studying, she is where most of his time is spent.

On the court, Bobby has enjoyed a very successful junior year of college. Of course the MIAA championship the Ichabods won became the highlight of the year, Bobby remembers the beginning of the season.

“We’re all young, with zero seniors on the team,” said Chipman. “But we knew this year could be a big year for us and vowed to each other that we would win the championship this year; somehow we pulled it off.”

 With the accomplishments of his junior year being so high, one can only put next year’s team in even higher regards. Bobby is looking forward to finishing his senior year with Washburn and his dad and making it a year he’ll never forget.