After three seasons in Chicago, playing for the DePaul Blue Demons, Paul Reed is NBA bound. Reed was taken with the 58th pick in the second round by the Philadelphia 76ers.
Paul Reed is a 6-9, 220 pound forward out of Orland, Florida. Reed attended Wekiva High School in Apopka, Florida. He helped lead their basketball team to runner-up finish at state in Florida’s Class 9A. As a senior, Reed averaged 18.2 points and 11.4 rebounds which earned him Orlando Sentinel’s Central Florida Player of the Year honors. Despite his solid numbers and accolades, he was considered just a three-star recruit and ranked 271 nationally, according to 247 Sports. After only a few offers, he signed with DePaul on April 12, 2017.
As a freshman, Reed played in 28 games, making just one start but gained more minutes toward the end of the season. He averaged 3.6 points and 3.1 rebounds in 9.9 minutes per game. His season totals saw a boost when he averaged 5.6 points and 4.6 rebounds in just 15 minutes per game during the final 14 games.
The following season, Paul Reed went from coming off the bench to a regular in the Blue Demons starting lineup. Reed was named a starter in 28 of his 36 games played. He continued his growth on the court and improved in almost every stat category. He finished the season averaging 12.3 points on 56.2 percent shooting, a BIG EAST-leading 8.5 rebounds, 1.1 steals, and 1.5 blocks in 26.9 minutes per game. After his jump in production, Reed was named Most Improved Player in the BIG EAST.
Entering his junior, expectations for Reed were high especially after being named as a preseason All-BIG EAST selection. He made sure to come out with a splash at the start of the season. He had 10 doubles-double across 13 non-conference game to start the season. A big game during that stretch was 25-12 performance that lead the way to a 93-78 win against Iowa in Iowa City.
The second half of the season did not go the way the Blue Demons had hoped. After a 12-1 start, in conference games, they were last with a 3-15 record. Reed missed the final three games of regular season with a hip-pointer injury. He did return for DePaul’s only BIG EAST tournament game. They would finish the year 16-16 after the season was cancelled due to coronavirus/COVID 19.
He finished the season being named second team ALL-BIG. He finished the season with 18 double-doubles, 15.1 points on 51.6 shooting, 10.7 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.9 steals, and 2.6 blocks in 31.7 minutes.
Reed decided forgo his senior season declared for the 2020 NBA Draft. Over the past several, he’s been between Chicago and Orland preparing to become the first Blue Demon to be drafted to the NBA since Wilson Chandler (1st round- 23rd pick) and Sammy Mejia (2nd round- 57th pick) in 2007.
He finished his college career averaging 10.6 points, 7.5 rebounds, and an assists a game over the course of 93 collegiate games.
Paul Reed has gone under the radar this whole time while always making the necessary improvements. Expect the same now that he is making the leap to the NBA as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers.
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