CORVALLIS - Justin Joyner is already shaping Oregon State men’s basketball in more ways than one, and the Beavers are getting a crash course in both his coaching and his personality during these early summer workouts.
The first-year head coach has brought in a newly assembled roster, and the early lessons have gone beyond X’s and O’s. His players are picking up on the new standard he wants, the value of appreciating one another and the opportunity they have at OSU, along with a better feel for the staff guiding them.
They’re also learning that Joyner once described himself as a “Greek god with ice in my veins.”
That line comes from a 15-year-old video that has resurfaced on YouTube. Back when Joyner was a senior at UC Santa Barbara, he made a spoof of the then-popular Old Spice commercials to help promote Gauchos basketball to students. In a way, it was name, image and likeness before that phrase had a name.
Joyner said he expected the clip to come back around eventually, and it did once the Michigan guys found it and started passing it through the team’s group chat.
“The Michigan guys - ugh - when they found it, because they found it, and once they found it they were throwing it around in our group chat and they were taking shots," Joyner said. “It was great.”
OSU’s lone returning player, senior guard Josiah Lake II, had a strong reaction of his own when he watched the old video. He said he’s already thinking about having some fun with his coach around the practice facility.
“I might go to the store and leave a couple of sticks of Old Spice and leave it on his desk,” Lake said. “I might have to get a stick of Old Spice and play with him and troll with him a little bit.”
Joyner’s past in front of the camera goes beyond that spoof. Before getting into coaching, he also spent time acting and modeling, and showed up in local print ads and television commercials. Most of that work has faded into the background, but the old video has given the Beavers a fresh window into the man leading them.
For now, though, the focus is on what happens on the court. Joyner said the summer is a key stretch for building the habits and identity he wants in place before the season arrives four months from now.
“If we can accomplish (instilling the standard) this summer along with continuing to evolve and become more self-aware, become more teammate aware and ultimately build out our toughness and our culture identity, we’ll be in a good spot,” Joyner said.
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