Willis Reed

Willis Reed Jr. (June 25, 1942 – March 21, 2023) was an American professional basketball player, coach, and general manager. Born in Hico, Louisiana, he was the only child of Willis Reed. He spent his entire ten-year professional playing career, from 1964 to 1974, with the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association. Reed was a seven-time NBA All-Star and a five-time All-NBA selection, earning first-team honors in 1970, the year he was named the league's Most Valuable Player. He won two NBA championships, in 1970 and 1973, and was voted NBA Finals MVP on both occasions. He remains the only second-round draft pick to have won that award twice.

After retiring as a player, Reed served as an assistant and head coach with several teams for nearly a decade. He was then promoted to general manager and vice president of basketball operations for the New Jersey Nets, a role he held from 1989 to 1996. He subsequently became the team's senior vice president of basketball operations, holding that position when the Nets reached the NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003. Reed was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1982 and was named to both the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams.