Freddie Gillespie

Frederick Gillespie (born June 14, 1997) is an American college basketball player for the Baylor Bears of the Big 12 Conference.

Freddie Gillespie
No. 33 – Baylor Bears
PositionPower forward
LeagueBig 12 Conference
Personal information
Born (1997-06-14) June 14, 1997
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High schoolEast Ridge
(Woodbury, Minnesota)
College
Career highlights and awards
  • Big 12 Most Improved Player (2020)
  • Second-team All-Big 12 (2020)
  • Big 12 All-Defensive Team (2020)
  • Second-team All-MIAC (2017)

Early life and high school career

Gillespie grew up in Saint Paul, Minnesota and played football growing up until trying basketball in eighth grade.[1] He entered East Ridge High School at 5'11 and did not play basketball in his first year thereafter breaking his ankle on the first day of tryouts for the freshman team.[2] He grew to 6'4 by the time he was a sophomore and played on the junior varsity team. Gillespie played varsity as a junior but tore his ACL late in the season, causing him to miss the summer AAU circuit.[3] He finally returned to the court healthy in his senior season despite not being able to run and jump like before, and impressed high school coach Paul Virgin with his rebounding and defense though Gillespie did not receive all-conference honors.[1] After receiving no Division I or II scholarship offers, Gillespie, opted to attend Division III Carleton College.[4]

College career

Gillespie started his collegiate career at Division III Carleton College, choosing the school due to its academic pedigree. He played only 16 total minutes in his true freshman season despite being, in his words, “the most athletic, biggest guy in that whole conference." As a sophomore, Gillespie averaged 10.0 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game, shooting 53.2 percent from the field. He was named second-team All-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.[5] Following the season, he decided to attempt to transfer to a Division I program. A friend of Gillespie's mother, former Minnesota player and assistant coach Al Nuness, was able to put him in contact with Baylor coach Scott Drew through his son, Jared Nuness, who is a member of the Baylor coaching staff.[6]

Gillespie joined the Baylor basketball team as a walk-on, sitting out a year due to NCAA transfer rules and earning a scholarship at the end of the year.[7] As a redshirt junior, he averaged 5.3 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in 26 games played.[2] On December 9, 2019, Gillespie was named Big 12 player of the week after contributing 17 points, 13 rebounds, and five blocks in a win over Arizona.[8] At the conclusion of the regular season, Gillespie was named Big 12 Most Improved Player, Second Team All-Big 12 and to the All-Defensive Team after averaging 9.6 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game.[9][10]

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College

NCAA Division I
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 Baylor
Redshirt
2018–19 Baylor 261118.3.652–.5314.4.3.71.15.3
2019–20 Baylor 303028.4.550–.6849.0.51.12.29.6
Career 564123.7.582–.6466.9.4.91.77.6

NCAA Division III
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2015–16 Carleton 404.0.500–.2501.8.3.3.51.0
2016–17 Carleton 272322.8.532–.5838.3.8.62.610.0
Career 312320.4.532–.5447.5.7.52.38.8

References
  1. Frederick, Jace (January 17, 2020). "Late-blooming Freddie Gillespie goes from East Ridge role player to Baylor beast". St. Paul Pioneer Press. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  2. Fuller, Marcus (January 17, 2020). "Surprise, surprise: Freddie Gillespie's leap from low-level hoops to Final Four dreams". Star Tribune. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  3. Werner, John (February 15, 2019). "Gillespie makes big leap, major impact for Baylor men". Waco Tribune-Herald. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  4. Heyen, Billy (March 20, 2019). "'No idea this would happen': Freddie Gillespie's rise from a D-III player to an important Baylor big". The Daily Orange. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  5. Hines, Travis (November 8, 2019). "'I had no idea I'd end up being here': Freddie Gillespie's path from Division III to Baylor starter". NBCSports.com. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  6. Eisenberg, Jeff (June 8, 2017). "Late-blooming big man attempts to make the leap from Division III to Baylor". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  7. "Baylor walk-on Gillespie gets men's basketball scholarship". Waco Tribune-Herald. May 17, 2018. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  8. "First Time Honorees Receive Men's Basketball Awards". Big 12 Conference. December 9, 2019. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  9. "Men's Basketball All-Big 12 Awards Announced". Big 12 Conference (Press release). March 8, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  10. "This year, Minnesotans took over college basketball. Here's our best of the best". St. Paul Pioneer Press. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
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