Frederick Gillespie (born June 14, 1997) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player for

Crvena zvezda Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club, ), commonly known as Red Star Belgrade in English-language media, is a Serbian professional Association football, foot ...

of the Serbian KLS, the

Adriatic League The ABA League, renamed to the ABA League First Division in 2017, is the 1st-tier regional men's professional basketball league that originally featured clubs from the former Yugoslavia (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Mac ...

and the EuroLeague. He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

Carleton Knights The Carleton Knights are the athletic teams that represent Carleton College, located in Northfield, Minnesota, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the Division III level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily compe ...

and the Baylor Bears.

Early life and high school career

Gillespie grew up in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center ...

and played football growing up until trying basketball in eighth grade. He entered East Ridge High School at 5'11" and did not play basketball his freshman year, after breaking his ankle on the first day of team tryouts. He grew to 6'4" by the time he was a sophomore, and subsequently played on the junior

varsity team In most English-speaking countries, varsity is an abbreviation of the word ''university''. In the United States and Canada, the term is mostly used in relation to sports teams. Varsity in the United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, varsity team ...

. Gillespie played varsity ball as a junior but tore his ACL late in the season, causing him to miss the summer AAU circuit. He finally returned to the court healthy in his senior season, although Gillespie did not receive any all-conference honors. After receiving no Division I or II scholarship offers, Gillespie opted to attend Division III Carleton College.

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 The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) is a college athletic conference which competes in NCAA Division III. All 13 of the member schools are located in Minnesota and are private institutions, with only two being non-sectarian. ...

. Following the season, he decided to attempt to transfer to a Division I program. A friend of Gillespie's mother, former

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

player and assistant coach Al Nuness, was able to put him in contact with Baylor coach

Scott Drew Scott Homer Drew (born October 23, 1970) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach of the Baylor Bears, a position he has held since 2003. Drew began his coaching career as an assistant for Valparaiso under his father Hom ...

through his son, Jared Nuness, a member of the Baylor coaching staff. Gillespie joined the Baylor basketball team as a walk-on, sitting out a year due to

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

transfer rules and then earning a scholarship. As a redshirt junior, he averaged 5.3 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in 26 games played. On December 9, 2019, Gillespie was named

Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its f ...

Player of the Week after contributing 17 points, 13 rebounds, and five blocks in a win over

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. 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.

Professional career

Memphis Hustle (2021)

After going undrafted in the

2020 NBA draft The 2020 NBA draft was held on November 18, 2020. The draft was originally scheduled to be held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on June 25, but due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it was instead conducted at ESPN's facilities in Bristol, Connecti ...

, Gillespie signed a training camp contract with the Dallas Mavericks, but didn't make the final roster. On January 11, 2021, the

Memphis Hustle The Memphis Hustle are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in the Greater Memphis suburb of Southaven, Mississippi, and are affiliated with the Memphis Grizzlies. The team plays their home games at the Landers Ce ...

selected Gillespie with the 2nd pick overall in the 2020–2021

NBA G League draft The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA Dev ...

. In 15 games, he averaged 10.5 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 27.8 minutes while shooting .570 from the field and recording six double-doubles.

Toronto Raptors (2021)

On April 8, 2021, Gillespie signed a 10-day contract with the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

. Two days later, he made his debut with the Raptors, recording six points, four rebounds, one assist, three steals and one block in 18 minutes during a 135–115 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers. On April 14, in a 122–117 win over the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...

, he scored 9 points, grabbed 8 rebounds and recorded 2 blocks, all career-highs. Two days later, he reached a new career-high of 10 points, with seven rebounds, in a 113–102 win against the Orlando Magic. On April 18, Gillespie signed a second 10-day contract and tied his career-high with 10 points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal, going a perfect 4 of 4 from the field in a 112–106 win against the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...

. Three days later, he had four points, five rebounds, and a career-high five blocks in a 114–103 win against the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The ...

. On April 28, Gillespie signed for the remainder of the season. He was represented by sports agency Beyond Athlete Management. On May 2, 2021, Gillespie had a new career-high of 11 points, with seven rebounds and one steal, in a 121–114 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. On October 13, 2021, Gillespie was waived by the Raptors.

Return to the Hustle (2021)

On October 23, 2021, Gillespie re-signed with the

. In 12 games, he averaged 11.4 points, 12.2 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 2.75 blocks and 1.17 steals in 33.2 minutes per game, leading the team in rebounding and leading the entire league in blocked shots.

Orlando Magic (2021–2022)

On December 21, 2021, Gillespie signed a 10-day contract with the Orlando Magic. He signed a second 10-day contract with the team on December 31.

Third stint with the Memphis Hustle (2022)

On January 10, 2022, Gillespie was reacquired and activated by the

Bayern Munich (2022–2023)

On July 25, 2022, Gillespie signed with Bayern Munich of the German Basketball Bundesliga.

Crvena zvezda (2023–present)

On December 18, 2023, Gillespie moved to Serbian powerhouse

for the rest of the season.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, 20 , , 2 , , 19.6 , , .524 , , , , .697 , , 4.9 , , .5 , , .7 , , 1.0 , , 5.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...

, 9 , , 2 , , 13.2 , , .409 , , .000 , , .429 , , 4.0 , , .6 , , .3 , , 1.0 , , 2.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 29 , , 4 , , 17.6 , , .500 , , .000 , , .650 , , 4.6 , , .5 , , .6 , , 1.0 , , 4.6

College

NCAA Division I

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;", Baylor , style="text-align:center;" colspan="11",

Redshirt , - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , style="text-align:left;", Baylor , 26 , , 11 , , 18.3 , , .652 , , – , , .531 , , 4.4 , , .3 , , .7 , , 1.1 , , 5.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;", Baylor , 30 , , 30 , , 28.4 , , .550 , , – , , .684 , , 9.0 , , .5 , , 1.1 , , 2.2 , , 9.6 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 56 , , 41 , , 23.7 , , .582 , , – , , .646 , , 6.9 , , .4 , , .9 , , 1.7 , , 7.6

NCAA Division III

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;", Carleton , 4 , , 0 , , 4.0 , , .500 , , – , , .250 , , 1.8 , , .3 , , .3 , , .5 , , 1.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;", Carleton , 27 , , 23 , , 22.8 , , .532 , , – , , .583 , , 8.3 , , .8 , , .6 , , 2.6 , , 10.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 31 , , 23 , , 20.4 , , .532 , , – , , .544 , , 7.5 , , .7 , , .5 , , 2.3 , , 8.8

References

External links

Baylor Bears bioRealGM bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gillespie, Freddie 1997 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Canada American expatriate basketball people in Germany American men's basketball players Basketball players from Saint Paul, Minnesota Baylor Bears men's basketball players Carleton Knights men's basketball players Centers (basketball) FC Bayern Munich basketball players Memphis Hustle players Orlando Magic players Toronto Raptors players Undrafted National Basketball Association players