Former High Point University men's basketball standout Arizona Reid recently signed his first professional basketball contract to play for Cimberio Varese in the Italian Lega2 division.

A four-year letterwinner forward for the Panthers and May 2008 graduate of HPU, Reid joins a Varese squad that finished 8-26 last year in the Italian Serie A division. Reid is joined by former Wake Forest star Randolph Childress on the Pallancanestro squad. His contract is a 1+1 deal with the second year of the deal being a player and team option.

During the summer, Reid had workouts with a trio of NBA squads including the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors and the Charlotte Bobcats. A slight hand injury limited Reid during his NBA workouts, but all three teams are expected to monitor his progress this season with Cimberio Varese.

Reid, a starter for High Point in each of the past three seasons, capped his record-setting HPU career as the first player in Big South Conference history and just the 97th player in NCAA Division I history to record over 2,000 points (2,069) and 1,000 rebounds (1,013). His rebounding total also set a new Big South career mark and Reid finished his career ranked fourth all-time in the league in scoring. On the Panther record lists, Reid ranks second all-time in scoring, third in rebounds, first in steals and second in field goals made. He was named the Big South Conference Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons (2006-07 & 2007-08) and garnered AP All-American honorable mention honors as both a junior and senior.

All High Point fans interested in following Reid's progress with Varese can go to the team's website (www.pallacanestrovarese.it) and keep up with his accomplishments.