**Collin Gillespie’s Journey: Patience, Perseverance, and NBA Success**
PHILADELPHIA — Collin Gillespie knows what it takes to wait for the right opportunity.
He knew it in high school. Entering his senior year at Archbishop Wood virtually unheralded in the Catholic League, his college offers were modest — from Albany, Maine, and Holy Family.
He knew it as a freshman at Villanova, where he watched from the sidelines for six weeks in December and January before returning to help a team that went on to win the national championship in 2018.
He knew it as a rookie in the NBA as well — waiting out rehab for a broken leg that delayed the start of his professional career.
So, on Tuesday, as the 26-year-old prepared to play his first NBA game in Philadelphia three and a half years after going undrafted in 2022, the Huntingdon Valley native was comfortable with the path he’s taken and the destination it’s led him to.
“I’ve learned a lot about the NBA game since being here with Denver,” Gillespie said from the Phoenix Suns locker room before a 116-110 win over the 76ers. “I’ve gotten valuable experience on the court as well. So I think it’s just experience — being able to learn while being off the floor, while being on the floor, just a little bit of everything, trying to continue to get better every day.”
### Making the Most of His Opportunity
Gillespie has made the most of all that waiting, and now he’s thriving in the minutes that he has earned.
Currently, he is averaging 13.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.8 assists for the suddenly resurgent Suns. His consistent performances have even sparked chatter in the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year race. Despite being recognized as a key reserve, Tuesday marked his 25th consecutive start for Phoenix, where he has adapted splendidly alongside the team’s high-scoring star Devin Booker.
In that game, Gillespie posted 12 points on 3-for-6 shooting, along with four rebounds and four assists in 28 minutes. The night before, he scored 22 points in a win in Brooklyn, helping the Suns achieve an impressive 8-3 record in January.
### A Steady Rise Through the Ranks
Gillespie has impressively translated the flashes of brilliance he showed in the 2023-24 season with Denver — where he traveled to Philadelphia for one game but did not play — and his 33-game stint last year, into sustained production now averaging over 28 minutes a night. He looks the part of an established NBA regular.
This should come as no surprise to those who have watched him seamlessly adjust each time the competition level around him has increased.
At Villanova, Gillespie was a versatile player across 156 career games, scoring 1,858 points and averaging 15 or more points per game in both the 2019-20 and 2021-22 seasons. In his senior year, he shot an impressive 41.5 percent from three-point range.
Yet, surprisingly, there were no takers in the 2022 draft. Gillespie took the two-way contract pathway, signing initially with the Denver Nuggets. However, after Summer League, a fractured lower left leg sustained during a workout at Villanova sidelined him for his entire rookie season — a year in which the Nuggets ultimately won the NBA title.
### Learning by Watching, Growing by Doing
As he watched from the sidelines, Gillespie learned valuable lessons. “I think I learned a lot about the NBA game, the pace, the details, tendencies of certain guys,” he said. “There’s a lot that you could learn about the game, about yourself, about teammates, other teams, especially when you’re just sitting and watching. I did it when I was in college when I got hurt, so I kind of have that experience of being able to do that.”
Whatever concerns there might be about his size (6-foot-1), quickness, or defense, there is never a question about Gillespie’s makeup.
Kyle Lowry, the 76ers guard and also a Villanova alumnus, calls him a “winner.” Suns coach Jordan Ott similarly praises him as “ultracompetitive, has won at every level, fearless.”
Gillespie maximized his time sitting in Denver, then capitalized on limited minutes as a Nugget, before progressing from a two-way player to a rotation piece in Phoenix. His numbers have steadily improved with each opportunity.
An average of 3.6 points in 9.4 minutes over 24 games with Denver in 2023-24 evolved to 5.9 points in 14 minutes across 33 games (including nine starts) for Phoenix last year, and he has dominated in the G League, averaging 20 points per game.
This season, he’s been with the Suns full-time and is a major reason the team — once thought to be rebuilding after firing Mike Budenholzer in April and trading Kevin Durant in July — currently holds sixth place in the Western Conference.
### A Key Player in Phoenix’s Resurgence
“I always go back to his ability to shoot off the dribble, which I think is an elite skill of his and something that’s needed in today’s game with so many pick-and-rolls and drives,” Ott explained. “He’s able to defend his position for his size. You cannot target him. He became super competitive to take those challenges, and now he just got the opportunity.”
Gillespie is proving that his numbers from last year were no fluke.
He averaged 20.8 points per 100 possessions last season; this year, with more talented teammates demanding the ball, he has improved to 23.2. His assist rate remains steady at 8.4 per 100 possessions. Defensively, Gillespie ranks eighth in the league with 1.4 steals per 48 minutes played — just behind the 76ers’ Tyrese Maxey, who leads with 2.1 steals per game.
### College Work Ethic Fuels Professional Growth
Gillespie credits his rapid improvement to his college mentality at Villanova, where players treated basketball “like it was our job in college, and now it is our job.”
The number of his Villanova compatriots excelling at the NBA level only confirms that approach.
Now, Gillespie is adapting to the challenges before him, and as he has done at every stage, he is flourishing.
“I think I know my role,” he said. “I play with really good players. I play with Book (Devin Booker), and he has so much gravity on the floor. Jalen (Green) has an immense amount of gravity on the floor, able to put a ton of pressure on the rim.
“So just being able to play off those guys, I feel like I’m pretty good at just finding my role. Whether I need to go out there and score, whether I need to find guys, get rebounds, run the offense, or just contribute to winning in any way possible.”
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Collin Gillespie’s journey is a testament to patience, perseverance, and unwavering commitment. From overlooked high schooler to key player on a playoff-contending NBA team, his story continues to inspire.
https://www.thetimes-tribune.com/2026/01/21/having-waited-and-learned-collin-gillespie-making-most-of-time-with-suns/
