Joe Reed, but formally known by everyone as Coach Reed, has been a staff member for Huntington Park for over 30 years serving under many titles such as a teacher, coach, and even athletic director for HP. He is known for his time serving as the Varsity Basketball Head Coach for the Spartans from 1991 to 2024, throughout his time as a coach he emphasized on teaching them the principles of the game but also to mold them into young men that are on the cusp of adulthood.
Coach Reed is actually an HP alumni who went on to attend Long Beach State University for one year playing under Head Coach Tex Winter, the creator of the infamous “Triangle offense” (the offense the 90’s Chicago Bulls used that led them to 6 NBA championships in 8 seasons). Coach Reed’s time at Long Beach was cut short when he went on to pursue a professional career in basketball. Playing some semi professional basketball and spending some time in the famous Drew League, his playing days were cut short due to an injury that never allowed him to get back to the player that he once was. Coach Reed decided to come back home and go back to school to finish earning his masters degree along with teaching credentials as well.
His time in HP began when the Head Coach of the Varsity basketball team at the time asked him to come in and help work with the basketball team, it was such a great fit that he was eventually offered a position as the JV basketball coach. Due to an unexpected turn of events the head coach of the varsity team was let go by HP, paving the way for Coach Reed to step in and start his over 30 year career as the head coach for the Huntington Park Varsity Boys Basketball Team. He preached on not only forming good basketball players but also forming responsible young men who can carry themselves off the court the same exact way they did on the court.
“Winning is important but not as important as being a positive contributor to society.”
Coach Reed’s track record as head coach is a successful one with numerous league championships as well as a CIF Final’s appearance in 2023, CIF Semi Finalists 2014, CIF Semi Finalists 2010, CIF Semi Finalists 1998 – CIF playoffs 19 out of the last 20 years.
“One of my proudest moments as a coach was in 2010, when I had a basketball team that not only almost won the CIF championship, but also had each member of that team go onto college. Among some of the schools those players went to are MIT, UCLA, USC, Santa Barbara, and Long Beach. This is one of the reasons why we do what we do. We use athletics as a vehicle to move students in the right direction.”
Today, Coach Reed remains a staff member here at HP, working as a PE teacher as he has taken the previous 2 seasons off from being the Head Coach of the basketball program. He looks to return back to coaching in the future as many athletes respect him and what he has stood for for many years, he remains an iconic figure to many people as he has been a direct positive influence to many peoples lives.
Written by Adrian Garcia, Sports Editor