Reece Gaines Is Inducted into the Madison Sports Hall of Fame: The Pride of the South Side (Part 2 of 2)
Top: Reece Gaines playing for the Louisville Cardinals; Above: Reece Gaines with family at the Madison Sports Hall of Fame ceremony on May 29th at the Monona Terrace
by Jonathan Gramling
On May 29th, Reece Gaines was inducted into the Madison Sports Hall of Fame at Monona Terrace. It was an important moment for Gaines who had played for the Madison West Regents, the Louisville Cardinals and the Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets and Milwaukee Bucks before playing in European professional basketball for six years. Gaines has since become a head coach and is currently coaching The Ville, composed of former Louisville Cardinal stars, which is competing in TBT, The Basketball Tournament, a winner-take-all competition.
And the foundation for Gaines’ success — and the ability to overcome adversity — was very much in evidence that night. Family and friends were there who celebrated his successes and stood by him at the low points of his professional career.
Playing at Louisville prepared Gaines for the next level of his career in more ways than one.
“Louisville is a tough place to play because their fan support is unbelievable in terms of they get 20,000 in attendance every night,” Gaines said. “The city is small, so walking around the city, everyone recognizes you and you are treated like a pro. It’s definitely a tough place to play. I remember my first year playing at Louisville, we got booed because we weren’t playing hard and the fans let us know about it. I was 18-years-old and I didn’t know what was happening. Knowing how much the fans love basketball and how much I helped them get back to where they deserve all of the love that they have for the game, for the city and for the school is probably one of my lasting memories.”
By the time Gaines played his last game for Louisville, he pretty much had cemented a place for himself in the NBA.
“My last game was in the NCAA tournament,” Gaines recalled. “I had 28 points. It was a great offensive game for me. We played Butler. This was one of their first Cinderella stories. They had an awesome game. Walking off the court, I felt really proud of what I had accomplished at Louisville. I knew after that game, we were definitely back as a national brand. And I was so thankful to Coach Pitino and my family.”
Gaines was projected to go in the first round of the NBA draft and Gaines met those expectations.
“On draft night, I went to New York,” Gaines recalled. “I was in the Green Room. My family was there. Grandma sat at the table and was nervous. I couldn’t breath. You’re living in a dream until you hear your name called. I got up and held the jersey in front of me. All of the hard work culminated in that moment. You take a deep breath. I had accomplished something that I devoted my whole life to. It wasn’t just me. It was probably my dad’s dream too. He was a very talented basketball player. He played at Wisconsin. It was just a great night. We all hung out in New York and went to LeBron James’ after party. It was a great night.”
Gaines had been drafted 15th overall by the Miami Heat. He was at the heights. Little did he know how short lived it would be. While Gaines was in the future plans of the ownership and those who guided his selection, he didn’t necessarily fit into the scheme and plans of the coach. He sat on the bench the first year and was traded.
“I never got going,” Gaines said. “I missed that opportunity. In looking back at it now, I wish I had done things differently. I guess my story is I faced a lot of adversity throughout my career. But the one thing that I hadn’t faced before, I had to face in the NBA. I tell that story to a lot of young players now. As much adversity that you are going to face now, it’s best to fight to get through it than run from it because in the NBA, you want to conquer those things early. The one thing that I had never faced was a coach with me not necessarily being their guy or first choice. It was difficult for me to handle early on. But I kept going and kept fighting.”
Gaines was traded to the Houston Rockets where he played in only 10 games due to injury. He was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2005 where he played in 23 games over the course of two partial seasons. He played his last NBA game in February 2006.
Gaines could have packed it in then and gone home. Instead, Gaines headed for Europe and played professionally for six more years with several European teams.
“Obviously it was a competition adjustment to your psyche not living your dream and being disappointed in yourself,” Gaines admitted. “But as a lifestyle, it was one of the greatest things that ever happened to me. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. It was a life-changing experience. I adjusted to different cultures and saw the different ways of thinking and different approaches to life in general. I wouldn’t trade it at all. Plus I got to learn a different style of basketball, which helps me in terms of coaching. I’ve seen multiple styles of basketball and approaches to it. I was playing the way the NBA plays now 13 years ago overseas. I got to see Europe. It was a beautiful place. I saw all of the sights. It was a great experience.”
When Gaines came back to the States, he met with Rick Pitino who was still coaching at Louisville. And Pitino gave Gaines his perspective on how Gaines could break into the coaching ranks.
“He said I should be a volunteer coach for a Division II team,” Gaines said. “I volunteered for a team and then was hired by Bellamine University. I then went to Eastern Kentucky, a Division I school. That was a learning experience. Then I went to the Austin Spurs and learned a lot from the Spurs Organization in terms of communication and how to treat you are around and they hired really good people, people who would do their jobs for free. I learned a lot during those couple of years. And I went back to Louisville and worked in player development. It was great to be home. I was working for my alma mater. It was a great feeling. I was there for three years. I’m now the coach of The Ville, a TBT Team, with all of the greats from Louisville. It’s been a blessing. the TBT, The Basketball Tournament, is a $1 million tournament in the summer time. All of the games are on national television. There are a lot of high-level professional players competing. David Johnson who played in the NBA the last three years is playing for us. It’s a pretty cool thing.”
What has made Gaines an effective coach is his disappointments — and working through them — as much as his successes. He is a winning coach because he understands what each of his players is going through. He’s been there and done that.
“The rough times were just as important in my development as the good times, especially now in my position as a coach for over a decade,” Gaines said. “It gave me tons of experiences that I could share with every player I have touched and been around. I connect with them in any way, whether they are the best or the worst player on the team, a player who got screwed over because the coach liked someone else. I’ve experienced it all, been through it, and I feel good that I can connect with every player that I have been around and dealt with.”
And when Gaines was in the spotlight on May 29th at the Madison Sports Hall of Fame induction, it all came rushing back to him, the entire package of experiences that made him the man he is today.
“At first, with the video, you’re a little embarrassed with pictures of when you were young,” Reece said about that night. “But as the story progressed, it felt great. It brought back how much work I had to put in and get to share it with everyone. The award isn’t really for you. It’s for all of the people who helped you and it’s for the people who loved you and supported you through the good, bad and hard times. You know it was worth it. The work was worth it. The love was worth it. Everything I went through was worth it. It winds up being about your parents, family and friends and shows how much you care for them. I felt connected with that experience with everyone around me. It was beautiful.”
Reece Gaines is an award winner, on and off the court of life.