Campbell University

Joe Spinks Photo Gallery

Joe Spinks, a former four-time men's basketball all-conference performer, was inducted into the Campbell Hall of Fame on Apr. 9, 2010.
 
A native of Asheboro, N.C., Spinks arrived at Campbell University in the fall of 1990 and by the time he graduated four years later, he had led the Camels to their first-ever NCAA tournament berth as well as victories over Atlantic Coast and Southeastern Conference opponents.
 
Spinks framed his career by earning Big South Rookie of the Year honors in 1991 and capturing Big South Player of the Year recognition in 1994. In between, he became the school's career scoring and rebounding leader at the Division I level and finished as the third-leading scorer in Big South history as well as the conference record holder for rebounds.

He was inducted into the Big South Conference Hall of Fame in 2004.
 
As a freshman, Spinks led the Big South Conference in rebounding, a feat he matched both as a sophomore and senior. During his sophomore season, he gained first-team all-league recognition and added 1992 Big South all-tournament team honors as the Camels captured their first league title on the Division I level. CU then faced top-ranked Duke at the Greensboro Coliseum in the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance.
 
As a junior, Spinks again earned first-team all-conference honors and topped the 1,000-point barrier during the 1992-93 campaign.
 
During his senior year, Spinks led the Camels to a pair of benchmark victories. He scored a game-high 25 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, handed out 5 assists and made 4 steals on Dec. 4, 1993 in a 72-69 overtime win at North Carolina State, marking Campbell's first victory over an ACC school.
 
Just over a month later, on Jan. 15, 1994, Spinks tallied a game-high 24 points with 15 rebounds and 7 assists in a 73-72 overtime victory at South Carolina, Campbell's first triumph over an SEC school in men's basketball play.
 
A 1994 graduate as a sport management major, Spinks capped his Camel career by leading his team to a school Division I era record of 20 wins and earning Outstanding Male Athlete honors.
 
Spinks began a 12-year professional career in the fall of 1994 in Sweden. His pro travels also took him to one-year stints in Finland, Belgium and Portugal before he began an 8-season run in Holland where he became one of the top professionals in the Dutch League.
 
While with the Ricoh Astronauts and Demon Astronauts of Amsterdam, Spinks led his teams to three Dutch Cup championships in addition to five Dutch League titles. His pro career was marked by three Dutch Player of the Year trophies (2000, 2003, 2004) and four Dutch Defensive Player of the Year honors (2000, 2003, 2004, 2005). Spinks was named to the Dutch League All-Star Game three times and was an all-league selection five-straight years from 2000-04.
 
Following his retirement in 2006, Spinks was named interim head coach of the My Guide Amsterdam club and led his team to the league semifinals. In two more seasons as head assistant coach, Spinks helped the club achieve a record of 61 wins, 11 losses, two league championships and a final four showing in Europe.
 
Spinks and his wife, the former Dawn Gibson, returned to the States last year with their young son Jonathan. He has served as head basketball coach at Eastern Guilford High School since 2011.