Goldsborough’s growth

By: Justin Lafleur, Lehigh Sports Media Relations

Watch a Lehigh game and you see Justin Goldsborough truly enjoying the game of basketball. Whether it’s striking a dance move during warmups or keeping his teammates loose, Goldsborough is the glue that every team needs.

“My teammates definitely describe me as easygoing, which I think is important for some of those high-stress situations,” said Goldsborough. “People can lose sight of why they’re playing basketball.”

With the Patriot League Quarterfinals set for Thursday in Stabler Arena, a career highlighted by tremendous growth is in its final stages.

“We’ve spent a lot of time with Justin, helping him shorten the maturity process,” said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. “We’ve talked about taking personal responsibility for his performance in all aspects of his life. Through our discussions and through his experiences, he’s learned the value of time management and the value of applying himself. We’ve seen growth in his maturity and we’ve seen him become a more engaged player with his teammates throughout the course of his career.”

Goldsborough’s fun-loving personality has always been a part of who he is. Growing up in Fort Washington, Maryland, he began playing basketball in the seventh grade. Goldsborough improved into high school and has blossomed in his time in the Brown and White.

“My dad actually coached our CYO middle school basketball team,” said Justin. “I started playing because he was coaching. He’s very intense.”

Playing the game because he genuinely enjoyed it, Goldsborough wasn’t even thinking about playing in college until he started receiving letters from schools in the 10th grade.

“Letters started coming in and my confidence started rising,” he said.

Confidence has been a key theme in Goldsborough’s growth. Now in his final days as a Mountain Hawk, Justin didn’t consider Lehigh until the end of his recruitment.

“I was on a Northeast college trip; I went to three or four schools up here and Lehigh wasn’t even on the list,” said Goldsborough. “Coach (Antoni) Wyche called and said I should come visit. Lehigh just clicked for me.”

Before even suiting up for a practice as a Mountain Hawk, Goldsborough experienced a memorable moment in Lehigh Basketball history. He was in attendance in Greensboro, North Carolina when No. 15 Lehigh upset the second-seeded Duke Blue Devils in the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

“The North Carolina fans were asking me for an autograph because they saw I had a Lehigh shirt on,” said Goldsborough. “I wasn’t even on the team yet. Just seeing how the guys on that team worked together, it was surreal. I knew a couple of them before going to the game because I had visited a couple times.”

Goldsborough’s transition to Lehigh was a challenge, as it is for practically every incoming freshman. The pace of the game was at a whole new level.

“It took me a little while to transition,” he said. “Academically, I started off pretty well, especially since we arrived on campus during the summer. That summer gave me a taste of what to expect.”

Goldsborough progressively improved during his freshman year. As the season evolved, he made a greater and greater impact. He ended the season with averages of 2.4 points and 2.1 rebounds per game, but his best basketball came down the stretch. The future was bright.

“You could see Justin’s athletic potential and his natural ability,” said Reed. “As his career has progressed, he’s really started to hone more of his focus into the game and making impactful plays like diving to the floor for a loose ball or hitting the offensive glass and turning his athleticism into positive plays.”

Goldsborough’s “turning point” game came during his sophomore season against Lafayette when he scored a career-high 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting while adding eight rebounds and three blocks in a home victory.

“The arena was electric and all my friends were in the stands,” said Goldsborough. “I just remember that being a crazy game.”

The effort gave Justin the confidence he needed and propelled him to big things.

Goldsborough has grown from a raw freshman who needed fine-tuning into a polished big man who can play with the best players in the country. He proved just that in December of 2014 when he tallied 10 points and a career-high 13 rebounds in Lehigh’s triple overtime win at Arizona State out of the Pac-12. Goldsborough helped seal the victory with five points and six boards in the third overtime period.

Justin’s overall improvement has been a byproduct of hard work, and a better mindset.

“I take everything more seriously now,” said Goldsborough. “I can’t play college basketball forever. I’m focused on working hard at what I need to do, instead of putting things off. I was a procrastinator as a freshman, which put me in tough spots. Now, I realize you need to put the preparation in early. The earlier you put it in, the easier it gets, which goes for everything – on and off the court.”

There may be no better example of Goldsborough’s growth off the court than an interview setting.

“When Justin first came here, he was really concerned and nervous about public speaking,” said Reed. “Just a few weeks ago, he made an appearance on a live television show. I was sitting next to him as the host was asking questions. You had a confident and engaging Justin Goldsborough who was answering questions and really demonstrating his personality. That’s not something we would’ve seen at the beginning of his career, but through his experiences here, you could see tangible growth.”

Goldsborough’s growth has come in the classroom as well. The business student declared his marketing major following his sophomore season.

“Marketing is applicable to many aspects of life, including marketing yourself and getting a sense of what people are thinking,” he said.

Goldsborough is currently at a crossroads… a major point in his life. With his collegiate career in the final days, or hopefully weeks, he could go into the job market after graduation, play professionally or both.

“Jesse (Chuku) sent me an email about a master’s program over in Ireland where you get to play for a semi-professional team,” said Goldsborough. “I’m getting my resume polished, getting my game polished and hopefully one of those two will yield results.”

For now, Goldsborough is focused on extending his Lehigh career as long as possible. He looks to help lead the Mountain Hawks back to the NCAA Tournament, which he experienced as a fan and incoming player. Now, he’s looking to experience it for himself.

“During your junior and sophomore years, you can’t help but think you have one more year,” said Goldsborough. “Now as seniors, we’re just trying to end with a championship. If we win a championship, all the hard work will be worth it.”

When the Mountain Hawks began the season 0-7, Goldsborough helped everyone stay the course, putting Lehigh in a solid position heading into the postseason.

“I think Justin has a pretty strong sense for people and an emotional intelligence of what his teammates need,” said Reed. “He’s able to fill some of those gaps by giving an encouraging word, or at times, making a situation a little bit lighter. That type of ability can help anybody on our team.”

“Justin helps us keep things in perspective, and his energy on and off the court is extremely contagious,” said senior classmate Devon Carter. “He’s had a big influence on the team when we’ve struggled. With how the season started, he reminded everybody that we needed to go back to being the basketball players that were recruited to Lehigh. We were struggling with our confidence at that point.”

The season turned around and the Mountain Hawks are entering the Patriot League Tournament on a high note, nine straight victories. Goldsborough will play a significant role in the team’s quest for a championship.

“As a senior, Justin will have the opportunity to use his talents to make athletic plays, make energy plays and really give his team a major spark,” said Reed. “He’ll also be the person who will continually bring people together, promote unity, harmony and other intangibles that are really important for a successful team.”