Phoenix Suns have found a diamond in the rough with Collin Gillespie

Phoenix Suns backup guard Collin Gillespie has perhaps been the biggest bright spot for first-year head coach Jordan Ott this season.

In the midst of a breakout NBA campaign, the Villanova product is averaging 10.5 points, 5.1 assists, 4.1 rebounds and a steal per game through 15 games played. Those are all career highs for Gillespie, who has also earned a career high in minutes under Ott this season.

His breakout continued Tuesday night, November 18, in a comfortable 127-110 road win against the Portland Trail Blazers.

Gillespie, in his usual role off the bench, scored a season-high 19 points on 6-for-11 shooting (4-for-9 from beyond the arc), to go along with six assists, three rebounds and a steal in 28 minutes of action.

With this performance, Gillespie became only the third player in NBA history to score at least 150 points, 75 assists and 50 rebounds in his first 15 games of the season off the bench. Only future Hall of Famer Russell Westbrook and LaMelo Ball have done that before.

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Even before that performance against Portland, Gillespie was receiving national attention. The Ringers Zach Lowe praised the Suns’ guard on The Zach Lowe Show podcast, posted on November 17.

“Who handles the ball for these guys when Booker is off the floor?” Lowe reflected on Jalen Green’s extended absence due to a hamstring injury. “Well, Collin Gillespie says, ‘Oh, you didn’t know about me?'”

Lowe went on to praise the widespread impact Gillespie has made in a bench role that goes far beyond what anyone expected of him at the start of the season: Gillespie’s third as a pro.

“That guy doesn’t just make open threes,” Lowe said. “He doesn’t just do the classic backup point guard extra pass, tough defense. He makes pull-up mid-rangers in crunch time. Him and Booker together have been great.”

What’s also impressive about Gillespie is his game-to-game consistency. As he heads through the 2025-2026 season, the Suns guard has scored double-digit points in nine of his 15 games played. He has also provided at least five assists in nine of his 15 games. He has also made at least three 3-pointers in seven of his 15 appearances while simultaneously being a factor on the glass and limiting his turnovers.

While Gillespie’s individual contributions are certainly notable, the impact he can have on teammates around him cannot be overlooked.

According to data from NBA.comPhoenix boasts a positive net rating from seven of nine five-man lineups with Gillespie, who have logged at least 10 combined minutes on the court so far this season.

Ironically, the two five-man rotations that include Gillespie with a negative net rating also feature Devin Booker. It’s a small sample size we’re working with because it’s so early in the season, but the quintet with Gillespie that has played the most combined minutes (25) is: Gillespie, Booker, Grayson Allen, Royce O’Neale and Mark Williams. That lineup has a net rating of +17.5.

What ultimately sets Gillespie apart are the lineups without Booker, with the 26-year-old Pennsylvania native holding down the proverbial fort.

In 13 minutes of play with O’Neale, Ryan Dunn, Jordan Goodwin and Oso Ighodaro, for example, that lineup has a net rating of +33.4 with Gillespie as the floor general.