REPORT: Justin Joyner is Latest Target For Oregon State Basketball Job
In this story:
With the departure of Oregon State head men's basketball coach Wayne Tinkle incoming after the university announced their parting, the program is vetting potential replacements.
Per reporting from James Crepea of The Oregonian, Justin Joyner is a candidate to replace Tinkle and "may be the leader."
More Reading Material From Oregon State Beavers On SI
The report begs the question: just who is Justin Joyner and what are the 38-year-old's qualifications to be Oregon State's next head coach?
Current Gig: Michigan Wolverines Assistant
Joyner joined Dusty May's staff at Michigan ahead of the 2024-2025 season. As an assistant for the Wolverines, Joiner helped Michigan win the Big Ten Conference Tournament and reach the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament, finishing with a record of 27-10. In 2025-2026, the Wolverines finished the regular season 29-2 ahead of this week's Big Ten Tournament in Chicago. Michigan is ranked No. 3 in the nation with one first-place vote in the March 9 AP Poll.
West Coast Coaching Experience
Spending several years post-college as a private coach and on the AAU circuit, Joyner got his first college coaching job at Saint Mary's in 2017. He began on Randy Bennett's staff as Director of Basketball Operations, but was quickly moved to an assistant coach role. He was then promoted to Associate Head Coach ahead of the 2022-2023 season. Saint Mary's enjoyed six seasons with at-least 20 wins in Joyner's tie on staff and reached the NCAA Tournament four times.
Playing Experience
Joyner, a native of Antioch, California (De La Salle High School), was a three-time captain at UC Santa Barbara, where he led the Gauchos to the NCAA Tournament in 2010 and 2011, winning back-to-back Big West Tournament titles. He appeared in 112 college games with 74 starts, averaging 3.4 points per game with 3.2 assists and 2.1 rebounds per game. An excellent defender in his day, He is third all-time at UCSB in steals with 134.
Adding to Joyner's knowledge of the Beaver State: his wife, Tracy Joyner, is the head women's soccer coach at the University of Oregon. They have one child together.
This year's Oregon State team continues their run at the West Coast Conference Tournament on Monday night in a rematch with Gonzaga. Tipoff in that semifinal matchup is slated for 6 p.m. PT on ESPN. Tinkle's time with the Beavers will come to a close when OSU's season officially ends.
Joe Londergan joined the SI brand in 2023 with G5 Football Daily. With over 15 years of experience in covering and working directly in college and pro sports, Joe's expertise has been featured in Front Office Sports, SB Nation, and XRAY.FM. He is a member of both the Football Writers' Association of America and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association. Joe holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Louisville and a master's degree in sports administration from Seattle University. Outside of his writing career, Joe enjoys golfing, although he admits that while he hits driver decently, his short game is a liability.
Follow joehio_