[WizardofOzParticipant]

4 seasons without a PER over 15, somehow becoming a worse shooter every season, having no other impact in the game. G7 against the Clips was the ultimate OJ stinks game. Their biggest hole is a guy who can hit 3s and open shots, someone who can score off the bench, and he basically does nothing, he doesn’t even take open 3s and miss them when it matters. Culminating on a terrible miss at the rim + missing a FT to top it off.



He basically provides nothing. He’s a one dimensional off the bench scorer who doesn’t have the confidence to be a "6th man shot jacker" type. Absolutely HORRIBLE return on a #3 pick in like the 2nd best draft of the last 16 years.

It boggles my mind how m,ore people don’t recognize him as a bust. He was hyped us as the next LeBron right after LBJ was drafted. http://cincinnati.com/preps/2003/04/27/mayo27.html. And some people still think he’s a good player just because of his HS hype. He wasn’t even good at USC.

[Raef LaFrentzParticipant]

You mad, bro?

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

And to think people thought this guy was better than Eric Gordon…

[llperez]

and to think a lot of people felt that trading oj for kevin love was the final straw that got mchale fired from minnesota.

[UNCbasketballbumParticipant]

some team will massively overpay for Orange Juice Mayonaisse next year.

[thatshitkrayParticipant]

 He’s solid, not number 3 pick worthy, but he’s solid. He just struggled after the first two games in the series. Also I think he’d do better if he was given an opportunity to play a bigger role on a different team. Let’s not forget he averaged 18 points per game in his first two seasons…

[HaleParticipant]

He’d probably do well with a change of scenery. He’s not the All Star many projected, but he’s still a guy who will be around for awhile and could get back to about 15 ppg for some teams.

[mosdefParticipant]

I dont remember anyone calling him LeBron. I heard some DWade comparisons cuz they worked out together

Him playing varsity since 7th grade didnt help the hype train but he is decent. With a team with a quality front court like Memphis has a SG needs to be a dead eye 3pt specialist, which he is not. I dont call him a bust. A trade probably would help him. All I know is that Memphis passed on some good dudes in the Mayo and the Thabeet draft in back to back years.

[For_Never_EverParticipant]

 I remember people on tv calling him the next Lebron.

[Forte IVParticipant]

Like mentioned before, lets not forget he used to avg 18 a game his first two seasons. And his rookie year for a long time he was averaging well over 20 a game. He still has the potential to be considered all-star worthy. He’s just been stuck in Memphis in a 6th man role thaat doesn’t suit him.

[BiggysmallsParticipant]

I personally think Mayo does alot more than people realize. He is a way better defender then people want to realize. Typically when a player is hyped as much as he was, the stereotype is that they are somewhat lazy and just focused on offense…Mayo doesnt match that. Offensively he makes pretty good decisions and usually doesnt turn the ball over, this series he struggled a bit with the Clippers pressuring him when he ran the point, but he doesnt force alot of bad shots, or turn the ball over much.

He isnt a number 1 option scorer like he was supposed to be, but in the right situation, he can be a pretty effective rhythm scorer and very solid starting SG. If I’m a gm, I’d offer him between 6 and 8 million because of his restricted status.

[bobbybParticipant]

He will easily get 10 mil plus.  You have teams like the Brooklyn Nets who dont have any scoring outside of Brook Lopez , and no one knows the extent of his injury.

[JunkYardDogParticipant]

how to make it in the nba ? that’s the old "the right man at the right place at the right time… with the right coach".

OJ mayo is not the kind of sg hollins wants to start next to gay gasol and randolph. That’s the main reason why he hasn’t succeeded till now. 

But that doesn’t mean he’s a complete bust or will never be able to bring somethin to a team. He needs to go away to a team where he could start and get some PT.

[TheBigEasyParticipant]

 For me OJ Mayo is nothing more than a rich man´s Ricky Davis. Talented scorer, but nothing else.

[theballerwayParticipant]

Hes been in so many trade rumours i just wishe any of them would have went through. As soon as he gets outta there I think he will flourish. He saved Memphis in so manuy games as the Only scorer off the bench and alot of times on the court. The coach is a not a great fit thats the big issue cause OJ can play and at a high level.. Plus hollins has no offensive X n Os skills, hence the numerous looooong scoring droughts. (see 1st round )

[Meditated StatesParticipant]

Did not trade for him here on draftnet. He just shoots J’s all day. He does not attack the paint. Doc told Danny no on the deal for Ray Allen. Doc did not want Mayo.

[PulseGlazerParticipant]

He’s a very good defender who can shoot, handle the ball, and isn’t a bad playmaker for a 2.  He’s got a limited role on this club, especially with Gay there, but he still has the potential to be quite good in the right system.  Personally, I hope he ends up in Cleveland.

[capecodderParticipant]

 Did you see him slap at the ball and Chris Paul at th emd of the game and just walk off to the locker room with no acknowledgement…..looked like Paul offered him a shake

[AZcats09Participant]

His talent would be maximized in a Jason Terry type role….usually when Terry is on the floor he is the Mav’s ONLY scorer (with the exception of him and dirk being on the floor together occasionally). Mayo has very limited effectiveness when sharing the floor with rudy gay and zach randolph who both need the ball just as much as he does to thrive. I know Mayo isn’t a starter, but he plays a ton of minutes with that first unit and is about as much of a starter as Manu is IMO.

I think the griz might be better off going small, starting him with Tony Allen (who can guard 3’s) and bringing Rudy off the bench next year to give them an all star caliber scorer off the bench. The other option of course would be to move him for some picks/quality role players. Unloading Rudy wouldn’t be a horrible idea either, if they can get some cap relief out of it because I don’t think the money he makes is a reflection of his value to the team. (they made a deeper playoff run last year with him in street clothes)

[Harbinger]

 I have been a fan of OJ but damn he really didnt do much this series and somehow always end up in back of chris paul on D? I didnt get that  plus from watching summer leagues its clear he cant play point so when he was trying to in struggling tobring the ball up half court  let alone set up teammates I started to be down on him.

I think memphis needs more depth and for the last 3 years they never RAN THE BALL THRU THE POST. I dont get it Rudy and oj mayo are jump shooters that dont mesh with z-bo and gasol if i was gm some bold moves will be made because when shane was getting open feeding the post they made the second round….

[surveParticipant]

I never complete judgement on a player until he has failed in another system.

On this site, a lot of us here are so-called purists, yet at the same time, we are bandwagoners just like the average joe.  Saying he is a bust and not worthy of his pick position, and yada ya is really quick judgement.  Mayo is a very capable player but Hollins and the Grizz are likely not the best fit for him.

There are many basketball analogies, but I like to use the Oakland Raiders as a glaring example.   Remember when Moss played there for 2 years and caught something like 12 TD passes?  Then went to N.E. and caught 23, almost twice that much in 1 year?  Everyone was saying in Oakland he was washed up.   Suppose Moss wouldve started his career in Oakland?

If you say he wasnt good at USC, then I cant really sit and debate with you about it as I didnt see much of them that year, but the games I saw, they were double teaming him and he was still getting off.  He looked like a man amongst boys offensively.  So what I saw of him at USC I was really impressed.

I am not sure you have seen all of what Mayo can do, likewise for Gay.  The Grizz may not be the best place for them.

 

[LazarusMunozParticipant]

He has a very slow first step when compared to the top undersized two guards in the league(Ellis,Gordon,etc)… I think the guy might of reached his peek as a Senior in High School

[Memphis MadnessParticipant]

OJ Mayo is not a pure shooter, nor is he some incredibly dynamic scorer.  He’s not that tall either.  To me, I am not sure if he is an "instant offense off the bench guy" since sometimes he has it and other times he doesn’t.  So if he doesn’t have it, he shoots your second team out of the game.

I think he is a fourth or fifth option on offense, a secondary outside shooter, a secondary ball handler, and a decent defender.  He SOUNDS like the kind of player we should have started with Gasol, Gay, Z Bo, and Conley.  A floor spacer, decent scorer, who can handle the ball some, pass, and play some defense.  Some Grizzlies fans wanted this to happen…  Maybe TonyAllen is better now as an energy/defense guy off the bench.  Play TA 20 minutes a night.  If he has it, let him close out games.  But now TA is tired at the end of games and OJ Mayo doesn’t have any chemistry with the first team.  

OJ is NOT a point guard.  But, he is not a bad secondary ball handler, so he can be a good option next to Conley.  Other than Conley and OJ, we don’t really have anyone who can drive the ball into traffic and get a shot.  Gay is not the best ball handler.

I am not sure our guys were put in the best position to win.  Maybe we should have started Quincy Pondexter.  He is bigger than TA and a better shooter.  Q-Pon is also a solid defender.  He doesn’t need the ball in his hands to be effective but he can hit some jump shots.  Q-Pon can give the first unit a floor spacer and a versatile defender.  Then off the bench we could go small with "generic point guard", OJ Mayo for offense, Tony Allen for wing defense and energy, Dante Cunningham for energy and shot blocking, and Speights for scoring in the middle.  So off the bench we could have had two scorers, and two energy guys along with a point guard.  

Even if we upgrade OJ or even keep him, I would like to experiment with starting Q-Pon.  He could turn into a Bruce Bowen type.  Which is basically what we would need with our starting unit.  A lockdown defender and a corner 3 type.

Make our second unit more of a defensive/energy group built around TA and Dante Cunningham (which might be our top two role players next year).  If we resign Darrell Arthur we could play him at the 4 or 5.  Then pick up a shooter and a point guard.  I think Steve Novak would be an ideal 3 point specialist for us, especially if we don’t resign DA or Speights.  Then we can use Novak as our outside threat as well as our backup stretch 4 at times.  A bench unit led by TA, Cunningham, and Novak gives you a premier perimeter defender and veteran, a rangy power forward who can score a little and block shots and board, and a classic three point shooter who can also grab some boards.  Each of those 3 guys can play 15-20 minutes a night.  TA plays at the 2 but he can guard all 3 perimeter defenders.  Cunningham is a smallish 4 man but he can protect the paint some.  Novak can float around the perimeter but also guard some power forwards a bit given his height.  If Josh Selby turns out to be our 4th or 5th guard then he could be our designated backup point guard and scorer.  Use Selby as the main offensive threat in the second unit with Novak being the 3 point guy, Cunningham being a spot up jump shooter and garbage bucket guy, and Tony Allen being the "busted play" guy which is actually where he gets most of his points. 

With that 8 man rotation we would have a well-rounded Big Four with each guy being able to get points, a Bruce Bowen defender type in Q Pon, a 3 point sniper in Novak, an energy guy, defender, and veteran leader in Tony Allen, and a solid big who is athletic and a high motor guy in Dante Cunningham.  Josh Selby could be our 9th man — a quick point guard who can drive.  Then fill out the rest of the rotation with another shooter type, a veteran point guard, and a veteran center.  Then make a good pick at 25.  This would be closer to the worst case/realistic scenario for our team, but it’s not too bad.  It’s still a playoff team that has a chance to make a deep run in the playoffs.  In the playoffs teams are carried by their top 5 or 6 anyway and I think our top 5 or guys are very solid.  How well we do next year will be based more on if Rudy Gay, Marc Gasol, and Mike Conley continue to progress, and if Zach Randolph fully recovers from his injury.  At worst we have 3 defensive energy guys in TA, Cunningham, and Q Pon as our other rotation guys.  Selby is cheap young depth at point guard.  So we need another big man or two, a shooter, and a veteran point guard.  Plus we have our draft pick.  If we make wise decisions there we can be an improved team next year without having to hit a grand slam home run.

[truwizfan4evrParticipant]

 He just not being used right i think he needs to go to another team.

[surveParticipant]

 We mentioned this in another thread about systems such as San Antonio that allows players to come in and do what they do best.  The rest of the teams need a player to perform a specific role.  OJ Mayo will forever be a specific role player as long as he is in a Grizz uniform.  To expect him to be more is wishful thinking.  Who he is now is who Hollins wants him to be.  

To me, every since they signed Z-Bo, their direction and focus on offense changed, but they are still trying to force a certain type of play out of Mayo and even to a higher degree Gay…because they gave him that contract.  When you combine a frontline like that, the other pieces have to fit well around it.  To me, it would be better if they had a player like Joe Johnson than Gay.  Gay is the type of SF that the Lakers need.  I dont know, maybe the Grizz may be interested in Lamar Odom?

Regardless, I think Mayo’s time is up there, and they should get rid of Gay as well if they are going to keep this potent front line together and center everything around them.  Another guy that would be great there I think would be Evan Turner.  I like Mayo going to the Celtics and I definitely think he would look better in a Clippers uniform than Nick Young.

All in all, its not that Gay or Mayo sucks, it that this is the highest level of the game and chemistry is tantamount.

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

Harbinger made more sense than anybody in this thread… About OJ Mayo *and* Memphis running the ball through the post…

 

OJ Mayo isn’t as good as people thought he was going to be. Slow first step and overall explosiveness. He’s not a live game type of athlete when it comes to finishing around the rim. He doesn’t get to the free-throw line. He’s such a tweener. No real position. Just an undersized high volume jump shooter. Memphis ran him at the point backing up Conley and it was painful to watch.

 

I think he’s improved on defense though. I’ll give him that.

[Ghost01Participant]

Just imagine Memphis with Love and Harden instead of OJ Mayo and Thabeet…They would have essentially the same starting 5, which is solid as it is, with Harden AND either Gasol/Zbo/Love coming off the bench? A big man rotation of Love, Zbo, and Marc Gasol?

[Scott42444Participant]

 will be getting some run practicing with Team USA this summer.  Who would have thought that he would have potentially a less productive career than Taj?

[llperez]

i think taj has become better then anyone has expected. But he was slept on at usc. i remeber taj compltely outplaying tyler hansbrough and brendan wright for about 30 minutes before he got in foul trouble and had to sit and the tar heels came roaring back and took over with taj on the bench during the ncaa tournament.

[AKOOParticipant]

Harrison Barnes up next. Same player really was not that good in college and will not be in the pros but people will give him every pass imaginable

[JNixonParticipant]

 Yeah @Llperez that was my 1st time paying Gibson attention. He flat out dominated UNC before he got in foul trouble. He was PUNISHING Hansbrough and Wright, getting whatever he wanted around the hoop.

[For_Never_EverParticipant]

 I’m getting negged like crazy because what I saw on tv.

Guessing I’m the only person that watched that special on ESPN Next. That said he is the next Lebron and Oden is the next Shaq.

 

O.J. Mayo, Dime #17

[benny15Participant]

i dont know why youre getting negged, i probably will too but i do remember reading the articles on line as well as people discussing it on line forums such as this. i remember people compairing him to a shorter lebron james in 2003 then to dwyane wade in 2004. if i remeber correctly, Oden was meant to be the next David Robinson or at worst, the next Tyson Chandler, Yi Jianlian was seen as a Pau Gasol/Keven Garnet type project due to his age, soft touch, height, athletic ability and the fact that he was only playing organized ball for only a couple of years or maybe less. and lastly i think i also remember JR Giddens was projected as a ray allen type player who had a good shot with great range and athletic ability.

 

it really goes to show how optimistic people are with early assesments.

[JoeWolf1]

 Hia career scoring average is 15ppg, it’s not like he’s a bad ball player.  I think he just doesn’t fit in that well with Memphis’ current team.  I think a new team would do him wonders.  He’ll probably never be a first option star type player, but the guy averaged 18 ppg his first two years…He can do it again with the right team.

[surveParticipant]

 There are always going to be comparisons.  We do it everyday.  It doesnt mean anything.  The media HAS to do it to because thats their JOB.  I didnt neg you or anyone else, I rather offer my points of debate.

My problem is people that jump on or off someone’s bandwagon so quickly.  Mayo was compared to Lebron because of how good he was at such a young age.  Players to max out at a certain point however.

If I remember correctly, a couple of years ago, people were talking about Gay and Mayo just like people talk about Griffin and Gordon (look how that took a turn), Irving and Thompson, or whoever is a good young up and coming tandem.  Next year it could be Kemba Walker and Anthony Davis, etc….  The point is, the league is too volatile to put any stake in that kind of talk, but as soon as things go awry, then let the bashing begin.  

As a rookie, OJ Mayo avg 18.5ppg….in 82 games.  Next year…17.5ppg….in 82 games.   Go back and check….but the only players that average over 18ppg as rookies are ROYs or close runner ups.  I dont know what you guys think this is, but to avg 18ppg over your first 164 games in the NBA is not easy, especially citing the glaring deficiancies you say he has.  (Slow first step, lack of explosiveness, cant finish around the rim, doesnt get to the free throw line, etc….)  I wonder how he scored all those points…and even more interesting, how many could he score if he improves on some of those facets.  He is not very old….only 24.

So again, why does OJ Mayo suck so much?

A few months ago, I suggested that Jeremy Lin should be the starting PG for the NYKs.  I dont think people took Lin as serious as I did, but after he got in the lineup, things got blown way out of proportion.  Before that time, you wouldve thought someone was crazy if they offered Mayo straight up for Lin, now its not so crazy.   Mayo is a proven player but he just doesnt fit with the system and coach.

Chips fall where they will.  Saying Gibson is more productive than Mayo is relative to their situations.  If Gibson had started with the wrong team he may not even be in the league right now.  You cant say imagine Love with Gasol and ZBo either because the NBA doesnt work like that.  Chances are one of those players wouldve been moved or never even signed.  

All in all, the assessments Mayo’s strengths and weaknesses are only applicable to the Grizzlies and the personnel they have to work with.  When he gets to play elsewhere maybe we will see a different player…..like we saw with Billups.  Chauncey was also a 3rd overall pick and it was about a good 7 years before he became a player of impact…and his career started out slower than Mayo’s.  Or we could confirm that it may not be the system but the player himself and his role with whoever he plays with will be in limited or specific capacity.

 

[WizardofOzParticipant]

@IndianaBasketball

I’ll admit that I can’t get on OJ too much when they put him at PG. Everybody knows OJ isn’t a PG after the summer league debacle, but he was forced to play out of position this series a lot because Gilbert Arenas is no longer capable of playing PG. He was forced to take Gilbert’s minutes at PG or playing PG when Gilbert was in. Jeremy Pargo should’ve been activated in favor of Arenas. He’s not good, but he can at least bring the ball up the court and defense better than Arenas.

[Author]

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