A beautiful story about Colin Gillespie, another “villain” of the Suns

The victory of the Suns against the Wolves it was a miracle as Jordan Ott’s men had to go on an 8-0 run in the final minute to win 114-113. All without Devin Booker for six fouls, then Dillon Brooks guilty of an offensive foul, also synonymous with the 6th foul. Anthony Edwards then made two free throws for a three-point lead with 12 seconds left. The All-Star point guard misses them, and the Suns find themselves with a layup and take the lead.

With the Booker-Brooks duo out, who would be the first choice for this latest system? “The plan was to give the ball to Colin. Royce had to come and set a screen, take the switch, and Colin had to attack with his right hand.”explains Jordan Ott. The system is therefore designed for release Collin Gillespie and allow him to attack his defender and create enough space to land that moving shot on one foot. It would be a “game winner,” and Devin Booker was the first to congratulate his young teammate.

Symbolic player of the new Suns

“It’s crazy. I wasn’t even part of the action. I had a bit of a black hole,” says Devin Booker. “I’ll have to watch the match again to break down everything that happened so quickly. But we’ve seen this scenario all summer. No surprises. Calm, flawless attitude. He’s taking full advantage of his opportunity, we’re all rallying behind him, and he’s a dog.”

Another “dog” in the formation that they don’t miss. With 10 wins for 6 lossesThe Suns are one of the very good surprises of this early season, and the departures of Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal have been perfectly digested.

“That’s why they made that trade, for games like that,” underlines Brooks, who arrived from Houston. “We have to find a way to have this dog side, this mentality. I think that’s why they brought me in, for these types of matches. I bring energy that shows every night.”

Like Booker, Brooke is very proud of Gillespie and his “dog” side, even giving him a nickname: Villain Jr.

“We have a lot of competitors in this group. Apart from the nickname, it was above all the competitive spirit between us this summer” explains the hero of the evening. “We wanted to win every game. I think that united us. We have a lot of guys who are winners, who want to play winning basketball, ready to do everything to win. And I think it showed at the end of the game: we never give up, we fight until the last second.”

NBA champion with Denver… no game

In the end, it’s a nice revenge for this undrafted player, out of Villanova, who first arrived in Denver on a “two-way contract.” His first season in the NBA was missed due to a broken leg, but he has his NBA championship ring with the Nuggets. Next season, again, new “two-way contract“, still with the Nuggets. In 2024, as a free agent, he snatched a third “two-way contact”, this time from the Suns. Managers appreciated him, and the shooter finally got a real one-year contract this summer.

“It’s really exciting for me. I’ve worked hard to come back from injuries, but I’ve also had a lot of good people around me to help me get to this level.” he concludes. “There were very tough times like missing the whole season, coming back, then re-injuring the ankle early next year. It was tough, but I had good support, first in Denver rehabbing and then here after the ankle injury, plus my family, my teammates. A lot of people supported me when I was at my lowest. I appreciate how far I’ve come.”

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Two-way contract : Designed to create a new bridge between the NBA and the G-League, this type of contract allows each team to secure the services of two or three additional players, to play with them mainly in their affiliate development league franchise, but also for up to 50 games in the NBA.