Mister 500

Steve Joyner doesn’t have time to look back. Or ahead.

The Johnson C. Smith basketball coach is on the verge of his 500th career win, rare territory in the CIAA, where only Naissmith Hall of Fame inductees Big House Gaines and Dave Robbins have more. Joyner, who could join them at this weekend’s Tip-Off Classic, is more interested in winning right now.

“I don’t worry about individual records in terms of this one coming up,” he said. “A lot of attention would be brought to me for that, but when I do think about that, I think about the number of people I’ve been associated with who’ve helped us get there. I’m more concerned about these guys getting better and winning their next ball game. That’s what’s most important to me.”

When Joyner took over the Golden Bulls in 1987, Ronald Reagan was president, the PTL scandal engulfed Charlotte TV evangelist Jim Bakker and Michael Jackson was atop the music charts with “Bad.” Joyner couldn’t recall his first win when asked by a reporter – an 81-63 victory against Knoxville College at Brayboy Gym – but the Golden Bulls (1-1)  are eager to deliver the 500th.

“We were aware of it as a team last year, but he doesn’t talk much about it,” senior guard Diondre Pratt said. “He’s more into taking it one game at a time. He’s more worried on getting his team together than him. He’s a coach who  puts his team before himself at all times.”

Joyner is the most accomplished basketball coach in JCSU’s history with three CIAA tournament championships, seven division titles and an Elite Eight berth in the NCAA Division II playoffs. His best team was the 2011 squad that won the school’s first league championship, made the Elite Eight and finished the season ranked 10th in the country.

Joyner’s accomplishments haven’t gone unnoticed. He’s been named CIAA coach of the year three times and South Atlantic Region coach of the year in 2001. He was inducted to the CIAA’s Hall of Fame in 2014, joining his mentors, Gaines, his neighbor growing up in Winston-Salem, Robbins, whom he coached with at Virginia Union, and John McLendon, the founder of the CIAA tournament and a pupil of the sport’s founder, James Naismith.

“I don’t know where I stack up, but I do know I wanted to be in that circle,” Joyner said. “I wanted to elevate this conference and this institution like Bobby Vaughn did. at Elizabeth City. I’ve been fortunate in my career to be around many of the legendary figures in the CIAA and actually I was trained by them because I had to figure out a way to beat them.”

Joyner has produced his share of standout players – 27 who earned all-CIAA and seven all-Americans. He’s won with teams that were small, quick and sometimes undermanned. The key, said assistant coach Mark Sherrill, is physical as much as teaching and relationship skills.

“The biggest thing is players,” said Sherrill, an all-America forward who played for Joyner from 1988-92. “You can be the best coach in the world, but if you don’t have great players to help you capture those moments, you’re not going to have them. He’s brought in players with less ability and once they leave here, their ability level is so high because he’s a great teacher.”

Joyner hasn’t given retirement much consideration because he still enjoys teaching. He knows the time to step aside is sooner rather than later, but as long as there’s motivation, he’ll go on.

“Practice has to be the best place a coach feels good about because that’s where you go to teach,” he said. “The game is where you go to see the results of what you talked about and learned. When I can see the light come on in the guys, then I’m feeling good about myself and feeling good about my contribution to the team.”

Said Pratt: “We’re just trying to work hard for him to get him to 500. I don’t think he knows how  aware we are that he’s close to 500.”

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