Rick Barnes on Ja'Kobi Gillespie's next step: 'Learning how to run a team'

Rick Barnes saw it on film at halftime Tuesday night at Syracuse. Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Ethan Burg were making things more difficult than they had to be in the Tennessee Basketball backcourt. 

They had the look they wanted with ball screens, but the two guards didn’t do what they needed to do. 

“It was there every time,” Barnes said after the Vols lost 62-60 in the ACC/SEC Challenge, “but they tried to do something else to compound and make it harder. It didn’t need to be any harder, but that’s again, part of the learning process.”

Up Next: No. 13 Tennessee vs. No. 14 Illinois, Saturday

The process continues when No. 13 Tennessee (7-2) faces No. 14 Illinois (6-2) on Saturday night (8 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPN) at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.

Burg at Syracuse was scoreless for the third time in four games, matched a season low with seven minutes and now has as many turnovers (3) over his last four games as points (3).

Gillespie is coming off a tough night of his own, scoring 10 points at Syracuse — his fewest since scoring eight in the season opener against Mercer — but he had seven assists to just two turnovers. 

He had four assists against one turnover in the loss to Kansas last week in Las Vegas, but Barnes said Tuesday that the senior point guard is still learning on the job.

“He’s learning how to run a team,” Barnes said. “He’s never really been asked to do that at a high level — make the right plays, read what’s going on.”

Gillespie played at a high level at Maryland last season, averaging 14.7 points and 4.8 assists per game. He starred at Belmont his first two seasons in college basketball, too, averaging 12.9 points and 3.7 assists per game. 

The numbers are even better at Tennessee, with Gillespie now averaging 17.6 points and 5.7 assists per game. He’s cleaned up his turnover issues from early in the season, too, with only five over his last four games after committing 19 over the first five games.

Still, Gillespie knows he needs to do more.

“Just being more of a leader,” he said before practice on Friday, “and talking to the guys more and just making the right plays all the time. Can’t have silly mistakes like we’ve been having, so just running the team and being more of a leader.”

‘It’s just going to be a little challenge at first’

Tennessee’s turnover problems as a team returned at Syracuse, where the Vols committed 17 of them. It was their second-highest total of the season and the most since Tennessee State on November 19. 

Nate Ament committed a season-high seven turnovers — his previous season high was three — and scored 11 points on just 2-for-10 shooting in his worst game to date. 

Gillespie it’s up to him to help get the freshman back on track.

“Just getting him involved more,” he said, “getting him the ball without him having to kind of create his own shot. But I think Nate’s still learning and he’s gonna figure it out.”

The same goes for the rest of the Vols, as a group.

“It’s just a brand new team,” Gillespie said. “We’re all still learning each other and still trying to figure out how we want to play. So it’s just going to be a little challenge at first.”