From South Carolina to Hungary, Dailey Jr.’s bond with Mike Boynton goes beyond OSU

Braden Bush

Editor

Mike Boynton began scouting Eric Dailey Jr. long before Dailey knew it.

At least, that’s the joke between them.

Dailey’s mother was on the women’s basketball staff at South Carolina when Boynton, now OSU’s coach, was a player for the Gamecocks’ men’s basketball team. Boynton got to know the family through those interactions and had followed Eric from afar since.

“I knew him before he knew him,” Boynton jokingly tells Dailey.

Dailey is set to join the Cowboys this season but first is representing USA Basketball at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Hungary, along Boynton, who is serving as an assistant coach on the team.

Dailey is no stranger to the international stage. It’s his fourth tournament with Team USA, and he’s been part of the program since his sophomore year at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. This tournament, Dailey is averaging 10.8 points and 4.5 rebounds in 17 minutes per game for the 4-0 USA squad.

“Each time I put on this jersey, it brings joy to me,” Dailey said in a Zoom call from Hungary. “Seeing my people smile and making the country proud is the best part.”

He and Boynton have crossed paths with USA Basketball before. Last year, they won a gold medal together at the FIBA U18 Americas Championship. Boynton has learned more about Dailey through those experiences. “He’s obviously a kid who’s worked himself into being a really good basketball player,” Boynton said in the Zoom. “But the thing I feel more confident and looking forward to is being around him as a person. He’s a tremendous ambassador. He’s got a sense of maturity about himself that’ll give him a chance to have a major impact on our program from Day 1.”

Dailey, a 6-foot-8 forward, never worried about where he would play basketball after high school. To him, it was about the coach and who would be best suited to take him to the next level. For Dailey, that was Boynton.

Having graduated in 2022, Dailey took a postgraduate season at IMG and didn’t have graduation ahead of him after the season. Dailey wanted to get to work and begin his adjustment right away.

So, he called Boynton and asked when was the earliest he could come to Stillwater and start training. Boynton told him May.

“I was on the first thing, flying out there to Stillwater. And I was by myself, and it gave me just a feeling of how it would be. Just being up there without my teammates and being up there in the summer, it gave me time to really just hone in on my skills and lock in and just grind.”

For four weeks, Dailey went to the gym without missing a day and would often text Boynton from the gym, saying he was working on his game and getting acclimated. Dailey began to meet the staff and work with strength coaches.

Just one month in, Dailey said he’s already seen big improvements. And other than the lack of a beach, the adjustment to Stillwater has been smooth. He isn’t worried about anything but basketball.

“Stillwater, it’s a good place to be when you’re trying to focus,” Dailey said. “There’s not many distractions there, and I feel like that’s what you need for a year if you’re trying to get to the bigger goal –which is the next level.”

Dailey chose OSU over name-brand programs such as Florida, Michigan and Texas, and the USA Basketball tournaments have only helped support a connection that goes back to Boynton’s college years. This summer is just another chance for Boynton and Dailey to get closer before the real work begins.

“I chose Oklahoma State because of Coach (Boynton),” Dailey said. “I see how he did other guys before me, and I feel like he has what I need, and the school has what I need.” sports.ed@ocolly.com