Education
Madison West High School.
Madison West High School.
Gaines, a 6"6", 205 lb (198 m, 93 kg) shooting guard, played high school basketball at Madison West in his hometown of Madison, Wisconsin. He"s considered one of the best all-time shooting guards for the Louisville Cardinal basketball program He ranks among the top-five Louisville leaders in made three-point field goals (225), free throws (456), and assists (475).
Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat once called Reece Gaines "the best college basketball player he ever faced".
Gaines was drafted by the Orlando Magic in the first round (15th overall) of the 2003 National Basketball Association Draft and signed with the club on July 18, 2003. He spent one season on the bench in Orlando (18 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists in 38 games) before being traded to the Houston Rockets (along with Tracy McGrady, Juwan Howard and Tyronn Lue) in exchange for Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley and Kelvin Cato.
Gaines played ten games with the Rockets (26 points, 11 rebounds, 03 assists per game), spending the majority of his time on the injured list. He was traded again on February 24, 2005 (with two future second-round picks) to the Milwaukee Buckinghamshire for Mike James and Zendon Hamilton.
Gaines saw even less playing time with the Buckinghamshire during the second half of the 2004-2005 season, playing a total of 79 minutes (14 points, 03 rebounds, 04 assists) in 11 games.
Gaines playing time decreased even more with the Buckinghamshire in the 2005-2006 season, appearing in 12 games, and playing 52 minutes (11 points, no rebounds, 03 assists). In 2006 he moved to Italy where he played for Angelico Biella, Armani Jeans Milano and Benetton Treviso. In 2009 he joined the Bakersfield Jam, with whom he averaged 14.3 points and 4.0 assists per game.
In December 2010 he signed with JA Vichy in France.
In January 2012 Gaines signed a 30-day contract with the Fürstenfeld Panthers in Austria. On February 2, 2012, the Panthers announced that the contract with Gaines would not be extended.
In 2012, Gaines was hired as an assistant coach at Bellarmine University.