Hometown Tennessee quickly emerged as an option for former Maryland point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie this week. On Friday, he announced that he was coming home.
Kentucky, North Carolina and Villanova all showed interest in Gillespie this week, along with Tennessee. A Greeneville native — growing up just outside of Knoxville — returning to East Tennessee just made a lot of sense. Gillespie will take over at point guard for Rick Barnes, following the legendary Zakai Zeigler.
Gillespie averaged 14.7 points for Maryland this season, adding 4.8 assists while shooting over 40 percent from three-point range. He spent one season at Maryland after starting his college career at Belmont.