CORVALLIS – Dexter Akanno is a fan of rap artist Kendrick Lamar, so much so that Oregon State’s third-year sophomore guard put his words into action.
While in high school, Akanno listened to Lamar rap about helping the homeless. Growing up near Los Angeles in Valencia, he had witnessed plenty of homelessness.
Lamar’s words touched Akanno. And, during a Christmas break, he was driving through a rough neighborhood when it particularly hit home.
“Just the looks on their faces,” Akanno said. “Obviously, it wasn’t good. It kind of made me sad.”
Akanno said he spotted a hot dog stand nearby. So he said he stopped and “bought a whole bunch of hot dogs,” walked across the street and started passing them out to strangers.
It’s become somewhat of a Christmas break tradition. The following year, Akanno bought a dozen cooked pizzas and handed them out to homeless. Akanno digs into money he has, or gets some from his mother, to make an occasional food run.
“I just saw the joy in their eyes,” Akanno said. “I get to hear their stories. You get to meet really cool people. Being homeless, it’s not always their fault. It’s just circumstances.”
Akanno and the Beavers are in the middle of a rough season. Oregon State is 3-17 and has lost seven in a row heading into Wednesday night’s game against California at Gill Coliseum. Of late, it’s been particularly bleak, as the Beavers have lost their last three games by an average of 23.3 points.
The outcomes are disappointing, but when the game ends, there’s always food for Akanno. That’s not often the case for homeless.
“This one person, he had a dog, and the dog was like, really sick,” Akanno said. “He was so grateful for food. He was crying to me, told me that he hasn’t been able to eat for the past two weeks.”
Akanno, whose mother Mercy is a nurse practitioner and sisters Chine and Cloma are nurses, arrived at Oregon State last summer via the transfer portal. He played his first two years at Marquette, where he had a health scare and, eventually, the need for a new school.
Just before the 2020-21 season started, Akanno came down with COVID-19. He recovered, only to discover something wasn’t quite right with his heart. Akanno was diagnosed with myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle.
For a couple months, he was inactive. The closest he came to basketball was watching practice. Dealing with a heart issue and COVID was a lot for then 19-year-old.
“I definitely went to a dark place,” Akanno said. “I felt like my dreams were gone.”
Akanno gradually recovered, but it wasn’t a quick return to basketball. He said he felt like he was starting over again at “ground zero.” Practices were draining and it took a while to get his conditioning back.
Akanno eventually played 12 games at Marquette last season, recording eight points and seven rebounds in 39 minutes. The idea of transferring came after the season, when coach Steve Wojciechowski and his staff were fired.
“I kind of saw that I had to find my way out,” Akanno said.
He had some knowledge of Oregon State. He is friends with Beavers guards Jarod Lucas and Gianni Hunt from their high school playing days in southern California. Akanno’s trainer knew OSU assistant coach Stephen Thompson.
Akanno said he wasn’t swayed by Oregon State’s Elite Eight run last season, but rather the Beavers’ process of getting there.
“It was the relentlessness of the whole program,” he said. “They didn’t really have a great season prior to their tournament run. But the way the coach (Wayne Tinkle) was able to coach his players … from top to bottom, everybody was locked in and connected.”
Akanno has emerged this season to start 13 of the Beavers’ 20 games, averaging 16.8 minutes and 4.8 points per game.
Along the way, he said, he has thought about continuing his random food runs in Corvallis. It won’t be planned. If Akanno sees a homeless person in need, he may just buy them a meal. Same goes for this summer when he returns to southern California.
For Akanno, it’s a two-way street.
“Everybody has a story,” he said. “You just have to take the time to get to know them and learn their story.”
--Nick Daschel | ndaschel@oregonian.com | @nickdaschel