The undrafted draft exploded! How good is Gillespie this season?

Who is the most surprising team in the Western Conference this year?

The current top five in the Western Conference, the Thunder, Nuggets, Lakers, Spurs, and Rockets are all very good, but if you want to say "the most unexpected and surprising", I think the Suns are more suitable than these teams.

After sending away Durant and buying out Beal this summer, the Suns are not optimistic at all in the new season. According to previous ESPN predictions, the Suns have a record of only 30 wins and 52 losses, ranking 13th in the Western Conference.

However, after a month of play, the Suns have achieved a record of 10 wins and 6 losses, sixth in the Western Conference. Not only that, the Suns' net efficiency has even reached +4.7, ranking tenth in the league, higher than the Cavaliers (+4.1) and Lakers (+2.4) - considering that the Suns' second leader Jaylen Green has only played one complete game, this performance is even more admirable.

Obviously, Booker's re-emergence is a major reason for the Suns' excellent start, but this Suns really doesn't just have Booker, others including Grayson Allen, Dillon Brooks, Ma Wei, Royce O'Neal and others have performed very well.

Among the many rotations, if I had to pick a "surprise among surprises" surprise player, I think it would definitely be Colin Gillespie.

Gillespie is 1.85 meters tall and serves as a point guard. He played at Villanova University for five years in college and helped the team win the NCAA championship in his first year. In his last year, he averaged 15.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1 steal per game, shooting 43.4% from the field and 41.5% from three-point range, which can be said to be quite good.

But his NBA career did not go smoothly. His old age and average talent caused him to lose the selection in the 2022 draft.

After losing the draft, Gillespie joined the Nuggets on a two-way contract. However, he missed all games in the 2022-23 season due to a broken leg. Fortunately, the Nuggets won the championship this year, and rookie Gillespie also became an NCAA+NBA double champion.

In the 2023-24 season, Gillespie made his NBA debut with the Nuggets, but his opportunities were very limited. He only played 24 games throughout the season, averaging 9.4 minutes per game, 3.6 points, 0.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists.

In the 2024-25 season, Gillespie left the Nuggets and joined the Suns. However, he did not have many opportunities this year. He only played 33 games in total, averaging 14 minutes per game, 5.9 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists.

This season also produced a representative game. The Suns trailed the Clippers by 19 points in three quarters. In the fourth quarter, Gillespie turned into a surprise player, scoring 10 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists in a single quarter, leading the Suns to complete a 119-117 reversal.

In the past two years, although he did not play many games or played many times, Gillespie still showed some things:

First, his three-pointers were excellent, and his shooting percentage in the two years was respectively 39.5%, 43.3%;

The second is that he can pass the ball and has a low turnover rate. Last season, he sent out a total of 78 assists and only made 17 turnovers, which was less than his number of steals (21). The assist-to-turnover ratio was as high as 4.59.

In the 2025 offseason, the Suns signed Gillespie with a guaranteed minimum salary, and this season, he ushered in a big explosion.

So far, Gillespie has played a total of 16 games for the Suns, averaging 25 minutes per game, averaging 11.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.1 steals.

As he has done in the past two years, Gillespie's three-pointers are very good, averaging 2.5 three-pointers per game, with a shooting percentage of 40.4%, and a low turnover rate, with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.12.

The last game against the Timberwolves became Gillespie's new masterpiece. He played for 34 minutes, shooting 7 of 12 shots, 4 of 7 three-pointers, 2 of 2 free throws, and scored 20 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals, the second highest score in his career.

In this game, the Suns were still 8 points behind in the last 50 seconds. The following plot:

——Royce O'Neal made a layup on the second attack

——Gillespie stole Edwards, and Goodwin hit a three-pointer

——Randall made a mistake, and Goodwin made a fast break layup

——Randall made another mistake, and Dillon returned the ball for an offensive foul

——Too Yang tactical foul, Edwards missed two free throws

- Gillespie broke through the emergency stop and completed the buzzer beater

In less than 1 minute, the Suns completed a rare 9-0 reversal. Gillespie scored 4 points, 1 steal, and the key buzzer beater in this wave of offense. The Suns coach said after the game: The final buzzer beater tactic was designed for Gillespie, and there was no alternative.

The Suns coach's trust in Gillespie is not without reason. This season, the Suns have won 10 of 16 games. Gillespie really contributed a lot, and the data can also prove it:

- When Gillespie was on the court, the Suns scored 119.2 points per 100 possessions, beating their opponents by 10.5 points.

——With Gillespie off the court, the Suns scored 113.2 points per 100 possessions, a net loss of 0.4 points against their opponents.

Considering that Gillespie is still a substitute, this on/off value is even more crazy. If the Suns maintain this performance with him, he may hope to compete for the best sixth man this season.

Every season, there are always some small figures in the NBA who have a career breakout. This year's Gillespie is one of them. Although he is undrafted, although it is the first time he has a formal contract, and although he is 26 years old, his performance really deserves more praise, and I look forward to him bringing more surprises.