Collin Gillespie’s rise comes full circle on Valley Suns’ final day
Oct 27, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Collin Gillespie (12) reacts to a shot against the Utah Jazz during the second half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images TEMPE — On the last day of their season, the Valley Suns are honoring one of the most successful players to come through their development program — Phoenix Suns guard Collin Gillespie. Mar 24, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) defends against Phoenix Suns guard Collin Gillespie (12) in the first half at Mortgage Matchup Center.
Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images The club will give away a Gillespie bobblehead to the first 1,000 fans in attendance on March 25, honoring his journey from a two-way player to a crucial piece of the Suns’ rotation, as the team looks for a deep NBA postseason run. The night has lined up perfectly with the history he is currently chasing with Phoenix — the single-season 3-point record.
As of March 25, he’s only seven 3-pointers away from taking the record from Quentin Richardson, who had 226 made in the 2004-05 season. Head coach Paul Jesperson, who coached Gillespie during his time in the Valley, isn’t shocked to see Gillespie’s rise in the NBA and notes the little things he did in the G League as the reason for his success now. “Collin is the ultimate professional,” Jesperson said postgame on March 24.
“That’s the easiest way to describe him as far as just his consistency with the habits. That’s really what the G League is about. It’s about developing habits.
So that says early on in your professional career or later on in your professional career, you have something that’s sustainable that you can fall back on to hopefully have a long career. ” Mar 24, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Collin Gillespie (12) shoots the ball against Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) in the first half at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J.