Over-worshipped “savior” slinks away, crucified by trOJans for failing to resurrect sc’s moribund Basketball “Program”
O.J. didn’t do it.
When now EX-trojan O.J. Mayo came to usc, he promised to put usc Basketball “on the map.” Well, Mayo led the trojans to a FIRST ROUND loss — versus an ELEVEN Seed — in his only campaign in South Central. Unless that “map” is a Mall Directory that tells you where the toilet is, usc is still not on it.
In fact, now every up and coming ball player in the Country knows that usc is where talent comes to rot and die. Even O.J. Mayo, who ADMITTEDLY has Jordanesque talent and potential, couldn’t take the trojans anywhere — not even out of the shadow of UCLA. Hardly “Savior Behavior.”
So, in the near future, unless a kid thinks that he is markedly better than Mayo, who will be tearing it up in the NBA by then, he won’t want to go to usc… because he’ll know that even if he averages 20 points a game, he’s still looking at an early exit in the Big Dance. The trojans have to battle so many obstacles in Recruiting — their dangerous location, the in-class armed robberies, the “gay sex in the campus restrooms” scandal, the lack of any Basketball tradition or fan support — that it’s understandable that they can’t put an elite team together. That being said, IF UCLA loses all five of their Starters, and sc still has Taj Gibson and Davon Jefferson to team up with incoming Demar Derozan, they will probably be favored to beat the Bruins next season. But it looks like the Bruins will get at least two Starters back, so sc will probably retain their status as second class citizens in the Pac-10, and in the City of L.A.
What should have started sc’s “Golden Years,” will now be looked back on by the Ketchup & Mustard crowd as “Mayo’s Gulden YEAR.” Of course, NO ONE really expected Mayo to be anything other than one-and-done, even Tim Floyd, so last night’s announcement that Mayo will declare for the NBA Draft and hire an Agent is not “exciting.” And because Kevin Love may do the same thing next week, Mayo’s defection — in itself — is nothing to gloat about. However, Kevin LED his team to its third consecutive Final Four, won the Pac-10 Player of the Year Award, and was named a First Team All-American by virtually every organization out there.
Even though Love failed to deliver a Championship, no one would call his tenure at UCLA a failure. In fact, Kevin showed all the young big men that they can come to UCLA and play for Ben Howland, and immediately become one of the best, most-productive, and most-publicized players in the Country. That’s pertinent right now, as UCLA could have another Donut Era (nothing in the middle) staring them in the face. Hopefully, James Keefe will not be relied on to play Center for 35 minutes a game next year, and also hopefully, their incoming big man can step right in, and hit the ground running like Love did.
Another difference between Love and Mayo, is that if Love leaves, he is a guarantee to be a good ambassador for UCLA. He will wear the colors with pride, he will root for and support future Bruin teams, his work ethic in the Pro’s will be unparalleled, and his off-the-court behavior will be impeccable. With Mayo, despite his 12 recent months of “good behavior,” a leopard never changes its spots, and once Mayo’s salary doubles from this year to next, it is POSSIBLE that he could return to his trouble-making, drug-cruising roots. Let’s just hope that he doesn’t KEEP following in the footsteps of the OTHER O.J., and just up and murder a couple of people. If he doesn’t, then we expect him to be a huge success in the one-on-one-centric NBA… but PLEASE — NOT for the Lakers. And if that horrible possibility comes to pass, and Mayo becomes a Laker, someone tell him to NOT buy a house in Brentwood.
Below are two more pics of Mayo, as a Farewell Tribute (watch that doorknob, O.J.), and three Spirit Squad pics, because apparently, for some of our most ardent readers, a day without Brianna is a day without sunshine.