diff --git a/news/9838.bugfix.rst b/news/9838.bugfix.rst
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..0ae54bec8a4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/news/9838.bugfix.rst
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+Fix compatibility between distutils and sysconfig when the project name is unknown.
diff --git a/src/pip/_internal/locations/_sysconfig.py b/src/pip/_internal/locations/_sysconfig.py
index e4d66d25d24..7e3ee6a22b9 100644
--- a/src/pip/_internal/locations/_sysconfig.py
+++ b/src/pip/_internal/locations/_sysconfig.py
@@ -136,6 +136,9 @@ def get_scheme(
         python_xy = f"python{get_major_minor_version()}"
         paths["include"] = os.path.join(base, "include", "site", python_xy)
 
+    if dist_name is None:
+        dist_name = "UNKNOWN"
+
     scheme = Scheme(
         platlib=paths["platlib"],
         purelib=paths["purelib"],