LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The University of Louisville has a slogan: Louisville First, Cardinals Forever. A forever Cardinal is returning to the nest as a member of Coach Chris Mack's staff. 

Reece Gaines, a Cardinal Hall of Famer, who played for two Hall of Fame coaches, is the new Director of Player Development and Alumni Relations.

In a statement to Spectrum News 1, Mack said, "We are excited to add Reece Gaines in a capacity that helps our student athletes. Reece’s experience as a UofL athlete, a professional athlete and a college coach will give him a terrific perspective to share with our players. His time as a former Cardinal will help us continue building a strong connection with former players who built this national program. We are thrilled to welcome back Reece.”

For the past two seasons, Gaines has been an assistant coach with the Austin Spurs, the G League team of the San Antonio Spurs. He was an assistant coach at Eastern Kentucky from 2015-2019. He began his coaching career at Bellarmine as an assistant for Scott Davenport from 2012-2015. While with the Knights, they reached three NCAA Division II tournaments, including a Sweet Sixteen and a Final Four.

Gaines was a four-year starter with the Cardinals, first for coach Denny Crum and then for coach Rick Pitino. He is still fourth on the UofL career scoring list with 1,945 points. He earned second-team All-America honors by The Sporting News, ESPN.com and Sports Illustrated as a senior. 

Gaines is third in career three-point goals at UofL with 225 and his 475 career assists rank seventh. Gaines earned his bachelor’s degree in sociology from UofL in 2003.

Gaines was drafted by the Orlando Magic in 2003 and was the 15th overall selection in the first round of the NBA Draft. He spent three seasons in the NBA. 2003-04 with the Magic, 2004-05 with the Houston Rockets and finally 2005-06 with the Milwaukee Bucks. Gaines would go on to play six more years overseas in Italy, Greece, France, Austria and Venezuela. He returned stateside and played in the NBA G League with Bakersfield and Texas.

A native of Madison, Wisconsin, Gaines and his wife Delisa have three children: Cruz, Alessandra and Carlo.