Gaines was born in New Jersey and moved to Lithonia, Georgia, as a child.[1] He first played football but transitioned into basketball.[1] Gaines was taller than his teammates and primarily played as a center but utilised his speed for a playstyle that involved him grabbing a defensive rebound and beating defenders up the court with his dribble.[1]
Gaines attended Lithonia High School where he did not receive much scouting attention during his first two seasons.[1] He developed a reputation for his dunking abilities during his senior year and received comparisons to Ja Morant which Gaines attributes to increasing his recruitment offers.[1] He averaged 18.6 points, 4 assists, and 2.7 steals per game during his senior season.[2] Gaines was selected as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution All-Metro DeKalb County Player of the Year.[3][4] He was a four-star recruit and committed to playing college basketball for LSU.[1]
College career
Gaines averaged 2.5 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game during his freshman season with the LSU Tigers.[5] He improved his output to nine points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game during his sophomore season while his 2.1 steals per game led the Southeastern Conference.[4][5] Gaines was primarily utilised as a distributor and defender with the Tigers.[1] He decided to transfer from the team when head coach Will Wade was fired after the 2021–22 season.[1]
On April 12, 2022, Gaines committed to play for UAB.[2][5] He averaged 11.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game during the 2022–23 season.[6] Gaines declared for the 2023 NBA draft but withdrew on May 30, 2023.[7]
Professional career
Maine Celtics (2024–present)
On April 5, 2024, Gaines declared for the 2024 NBA draft,[8] but went undrafted.[9] On October 26, 2024, Gaines was selected by the Maine Celtics in the 2024 NBA G League draft.[10]