[Hornets.com] The Legend Comes Home
http://www.nba.com/hornets/news/reed_040825.html
The Legend Comes Home
by: Chris DuPree, Hornets.com
When you hear the name Willis Reed, there is almost an automatic
association with one of the most memorable moments in NBA history.
Reed, with an injured thigh and hip, hobbled onto the court just
before the start of Game 7 in the 1970 NBA Finals.
He proceeded to hit the Knicks’ first two baskets of the game and
help lift them to a 113-99 win over Wilt Chamberlain and the
Los Angeles Lakers for the first title in the history of the
New York franchise. That’s certainly one of Hornets General
Manager Allan Bristow’s fondest memories of Reed.
“When I first saw Willis, I was 18 years old watching him come out
of the tunnel up in Madison Square Garden with his leg dragging
behind him as he went in to play the seventh and final game of the
NBA Finals against the Lakers,” recalled Bristow at Reed’s
introductory press conference. “That’ll always be etched in my
mind. He was a lot of people’s hero at that time.”
Bristow, who now gets the chance to work side by side one of his
personal heroes, also looks back fondly on his first personal
encounter with Reed while both were players in the league.
“The first time I met Willis, I was a young rookie with the
Philadelphia 76ers. It was right after the season and the player’s
association took a trip down to Rio de Janeiro. Willis was the veteran
player, a player rep for the New York Knicks, and we were having one
of these players’ parties,” Bristow continued. “The players were
sitting at a long table and Willis was at the head of the table. I
was just walking by, a young rookie not knowing where to sit, with
my wife and he said ‘Hey rook. Why don’t you just sit right here
besides me.’ That’s something that I’ll remember my whole life.
From that day on, I was really a big Willis Reed fan.”
Bristow’s take on Reed gives you an idea about who the man really is.
Courageous, a leader, admired and respected by his peers….Reed has
received those accolades from others throughout his career as a player,
coach and executive in the NBA.
Reed, who joined the Hornets as Vice President of Basketball Operations
on June 29, 2004, brings a basketball legacy to the Hornets that
includes a legendary 10-year career as one of the NBA's 50 greatest
players, 12 seasons as a head or assistant coach at the college and
pro level and 15 seasons in the front offices of the New Jersey Nets
and New York Knicks.
The Louisiana native was born on June 25, 1942 in Hico but grew up on
a farm in nearby Bernice. He was a two-time All-State selection for
West Side High School in Lillie before going to star at Grambling.
Reed led the Tigers to the NAIA national championship as a freshman
and went on to score 2,280 points in 122 games. He received All-America
honors as both a junior and senior, and led Grambling to three conference
titles and two other NAIA Final Four appearances.
Now, Reed is back in his home state in a position he had never dreamed he
would be in: Working for a professional basketball team in Louisiana.
“I never thought I’d have a job in the state of Louisiana,” said Reed
following his press conference. “A lot of my friends would say, ‘
You ought to come back and work at Grambling.’ And I said that’s not
what I wanted to do. I never thought about the possibility of coming
here to work for the Hornets. It’s a great opportunity for me and one
that I will really enjoy.”
Reed acquired his reputation as one of the best minds in basketball
while with the New Jersey Nets. He began his 16-year association with
the Nets when he replaced interim head coach Bob MacKinnon on February
29, 1988. He remained as head coach for part of the next season before
moving into the front office, where he served as general manager/vice
president of basketball operations through the 1995-96 season.
During his tenure in that position, Reed helped take the Nets from a
perennial sub-.500 team to a legitimate playoff contender in the early
‘90’s. His eye for talent is very similar to the vision the Hornets
have had. He acquired talents such as PJ Brown, Derrick Coleman and
Kenny Anderson. All three players have also donned a Hornets uniform at
one point in their playing career.
Reed moved to the position of senior vice president in 1996 and
continued to work with the focus of building the Nets into a
championship contender while playing a vital role in establishing
and solidifying business contacts in the corporate world and the
community. That work paid off in the 2002 and 2003 seasons when
New Jersey, led by Hornets Head Coach Byron Scott, advanced to
the NBA Finals in consecutive years.
“I think Byron is a great coach. I had him there in New Jersey
his first year and we had a tough year. And I would always tell
him that it will get better and it did get better. We had a good
team and he took the team to the only two championship appearances
they’ve had in the NBA,” Reed said about Scott. “He wants to
be a great coach and he is a great coach. I think the Hornets
made a tremendous decision in picking him because I think he's
the youngest, brightest coaching talent in the NBA.”
With the front office and coaching situation takencare of, Reed’s
focus now shifts to the job he has at hand: To help field a team
that will not only compete but win during the Hornets first season
in the Western Conference and get fans in New Orleans excited about
basketball.
“This is not a retirement job. It’s a job where we’ve got a lot of
work to do,” said Reed. “It’s going to take a collaborative effort
of Byron, Allan (Bristow), Jeff (Bower – Hornets Director of Player
Personnel), myself and the ownership trying to get us where we need
to go.”
For Reed, that means getting out in the community, shaking hands,
pounding the pavement and doing whatever else needs to be done to help
make the organization successful.
“I’m going to do a lot of things,” said Reed regarding his role as
VP of Basketball Operations. “I’ll be involved on the basketball side
but I’ll also be going to schools, talking to kids about staying in
school, working with the Read To Achieve program, going to executives
and twisting their arms about buying season tickets. I’ve done that.
That was my job in New Jersey.”
And he thinks that he won’t have to “twist too many arms” because
the fans will be in for a treat next season with the Hornets moving
to the Western Conference.
“What I like about the move to the West is I think it’s a great thing
for the fans,” he added. “Because I think the fans will now get a
chance to see Memphis, Dallas, San Antonio, Houston….So they’ll see
some really good playoff teams and I think that’s always good for the
fans. I think the teams will be appealing to the fans here also because
I don’t think they have an identity with teams like the Toronto Raptors
or Philadelphia. So I think the locale of these particular teams
(in the West) will definitely increase our fan popularity and our games
should be some exciting games.”
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