Derrick Jasper's intriguing decision to return to Billy Gillispie

One of the more intriguing stories to emerge during the holiday weekend was that Derrick Jasper, the former Kentucky and UNLV forward, was taking a position as a graduate assistant on Billy Gillispie's staff at Texas Tech.

Jasper was recruited to Lexington by the previous staff, but he played for Gillispie for at Kentucky. Players that are looking to get into the coaching world hit up their former coaches all the time. That isn't unusual.

What is unusual in the circumstances in which Jasper left UK to transfer to UNLV. After his freshman season, Jasper had undergone microfracture surgery on his knee, which is one of the most serious operations an athlete can have on their knee. It can take upwards of 18 months for the knee to correctly heal, but Gillispie pressured Jasper to get back out on the court after six months, playing 20 games his sophomore season.


Jasper transferred after his sophomore season, citing a desire to be closer to his California home, but most speculated that the move was a result of a disconnect between the coach and the player. (Ironically, Gillispie was run out of Kentucky after Jasper's transfer to make room for John Calipari.) That knee never quite got healthy, as Jasper battled nagging injuries over his two years with the Running Rebels.

Jasper, however, told the Las Vegas Sun that he doesn't hold any grudges.

"I think that was blown out of proportion a bit," Jasper said. "We had a good relationship. It wasn't bad. It was me wanting to get closer to him. I wouldn't be going back to work for him if I didn't believe he was a good guy.

"A lot of (the return from the knee injury) was just me trying to get back early enough to help my team. That's all in the past now. I'm just looking to the future."

The future does look bright. Jasper will be earning a salary at Texas Tech while also having the courses he will take towards his master's degree paid for. It also isn't a bad coaching gig, either. Prior to taking the Kentucky job, Gillispie turned both UTEP and Texas A&M from the bottom of their respective leagues into NCAA Tournament teams. In UTEP's case, it only took him one season to make a 6-24 team into a 24-8 team.

Being associated with that kind of success at Texas Tech certainly wouldn't be a bad thing for Jasper's coaching resume.