‘Gentle giant’: Former NBL star Jason Joynes remembered after short battle with cancer
Former NBL player and Adelaide coach Jason Joynes has been remember by his wife and family as a gentle giant with an incredible shoe collection.
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When former Adelaide NBL player Jason Joynes married his wife Michelle, the pair took a photo where he stood behind her and wrapped his long arms around her.
Late last week, Michelle Joynes decided they needed to recreate the moment, a memory for her to hold on to.
“The funny thing is that I was … bawling my eyes out, so I look like crap,” Ms Joynes said.
The pair first met in a coffee shop 30 years ago.
“When we left we could see our reflection in a window and … we just stood next to each other and his big teddy bear arm wrapped around me and he said, ‘we look pretty good together’,” said Ms Joynes, who lives in the Adelaide’s western suburbs.
And they did, for 30 years together – 27 of them married – until Jason passed away surrounded by his loving family on September 18 after a short battle with cancer.
He was only 54.
Ms Joynes said her husband was a “gentle giant” who, when he discovered he could buy shoes in his size (size 17) online, it was game over.
“He probably has more shoes than me,” she said.
He cared about sport, basketball of course, but also football and he loved his family, including his three kids Eliza, Isaac and Scarlett.
“Our of all his achievements and accomplishments we would both say our children, our family is our biggest,” Ms Joynes said.
Jason’s NBL career began with the Westside Melbourne Saints in 1989, making his professional debut at 19 before moving to the Newcastle Falcons and finally the Geelong Supercats.
Then he spent 10 seasons playing for Mount Gambier Pioneers where he won a championship with the team and was awarded a life membership.
“His time in Mount Gambier would’ve been a highlight for him and the impact he had in the community,” Ms Joynes said.
Since playing Jason always stayed connected to the game, coaching and serving as vice president of the Woodville Warriors.
The family most recently went on a trip to the US where they travelled through LA, Las Vegas and Grand Canyon in January this year.
“He got to see his Boston Celtics play,” Ms Joynes said.
They ended the trip with a visit to Hawaii.
Upon their return to Australia, Jason began complaining of a change in his bowel movements. In April he received a diagnosis of neuroendocrine tumours and immediately commenced chemotherapy.
“He had several rounds of chemo but then the scans revealed the cancer was extensive and further treatment was no longer possible,” Ms Joynes said.
On Father’s Day the family decided to bring Hawaii to Jason and wore Hawaiian shirts and sunglasses.
“Our last fun thing we did together was to be in Hawaii and here we were, nine months later, we just wanted to bring that positivity and love and fun to the hospital for that afternoon,” Ms Joynes said.
Jason is survived by his wife Michelle Joynes, his children Eliza, Isaac and Scarlett Joynes, his parents Eric and Robyn Joynes and his sister Sheraleen Cox and her family.
He was born on January 23, 1970, and he died on September 18, 2024. He was 54.
If you’d like to donate to the family during this time, you can here.
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