Maryland point guard transfer Ja’Kobi Gillespie was the prize of Tennessee basketball’s transfer portal class. Gillespie averaged 14.7 points and 4.8 assists per game on his way to earning Third Team All-Big 10 honors in his junior season.
No one on Tennessee’s roster has had more success at the college level than Gillespie. Yet the point guard still exceeded expectations in how he performed during the Vols’ summer workouts.
“It’s funny because during the year you don’t really get to watch a lot of other teams,” Tennessee associate head coach Justin Gainey said earlier this week. “But I did get to see him in some flashes and a couple games here and there and I thought, man, he’s good. But when we got him, I was like, man, he’s better than I thought he was going to be from a basketball standpoint. … He’s dynamic. He’s a big time player and a great person.”
Gillespie spent just one season at Maryland after playing his first two college seasons at Belmont. He made the adjustment to power five basketball seamlessly while helping lead the Terrapins to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2016.
The 6-foot-1 point guard was best known for his shooting at Maryland, making 87 three-pointers at a 41% clip. Gillespie showed that ability this summer, frequently shining in practices with his ability to knock down perimeter jumpers.
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But Gillespie also impressed with his consistent ability to get to and finish at the basket. His quickness and explosiveness was not his greatest trait at Maryland but he showed improvement there in his first summer at Tennessee.
The area Tennessee’s coaches want to see Gillespie improve is with his vocal leadership. He’s naturally quiet and someone that lets his actions do the talking. But point guard is a vocal position and Tennessee is looking for outspoken leaders to replace Zakai Zeigler and Jahmai Mashack.
“From just a person as a teammate, the one thing I’d say and that, that we talk to him a lot about is being more vocal,” Gainey said. “Getting outside of yourself in that capacity because he’s as good of a point guard as there is in the country. And the next step for him is going to be the communication piece, the talking piece, the leading putting guys where they’re supposed to be. … Kind of like Nate (Ament)— humble and not a rah rah type of in your face guy, but just appreciative of everything.
Gillespie is a local native, growing up as a Vol fan in East Tennessee. He was a standout at Greenville High School before signing with Belmont out of high school. The point guard is the first East Tennessee native on Tennessee’s roster since John Fulkerson departed following the 2021-22 season.
“He grew up a Tennessee guy, and he understands what it means to wear the jersey and it’s something he’s always dreamt of and that is, it’s just fun to see him living his dream and being here,” Gainey said.
