Russ Smith

In response to an LA times blurb that says Mayo is still telling everyone he's not interested in going anywhere but USC next year, Telep, a national scouting service guy said he disagrees. He said that Mayo hasn't talked to him or another rival scouting service in over a month and that based on what he hears "I don't think he has an interest in playing in college. I think he'll go to Europe, or play a year with the Globetrotters, and then go pro."

Another national scouting guy agrees saying the word is Mayo has been a celebrity for so long he simply doesn't want to go to college and be a student saying he's been treated like a pro for so long it would be hard for him to "do the college thing."

I still say these guys are just being PC and avoiding potentially being sued, what they're all saying without saying it is this kid is already a pro, he won't be allowed to play in college.

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“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo

Russ Smith

Mayo is really a circus. He announced yesterday he was going to visit K State, Florida, UCONN and Florida. Yes he named Florida twice, and UCONN has already said they have not offered Mayo a scholarship and are not currently recruiting him, which is all they are allowed to say under NCAA rules.

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“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo

abomb

Is there any chance this kid is going to be 50% as good as all this bullcrap?

Russ Smith

To be honest I think Mayo is a GREAT player, I'm thrilled UCLA got Kevin Love but anybody who says he's a better player than Mayo is on crack. There just aren't that many good bigmen so even in the camps Love is often dominating guys who are 3 inches shorter or 40 pounds lighter while Mayo is going up against Derrick Rose and a bunch of other guys his size with great talent.

The problem is Mayo has been a star for so long he's completely spoiled by the system. I think if he was allowed to play at USC next year he'd probably put up on the order of 22-25 PPG and 5-8 APG depending on how fast they play, he's that good. I just don't think he'll be eligible.

People forget Mayo has been "the man" since 7th grade in his class, everyone goes after him.

Love will have a bigger impact because he'll be on a much better team, hell he may go 20-10 and 5 APG he's terrific, but when you start talking NBA potential I think Mayo has much more. The question on him is maturity plain and simple, is he going to be mature enough to avoid bad decisions when he's making a ton of money in the NBA in 2 years?

I love him as a player but I think he's everythign that's wrong with amateur basketball.

__________________
“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo

sly fly

Don't see the big fuss about the kid and where he goes to take Hoops 101 at.

He's gone after 1 year anyway. And, likely going to leave a lot of ? marks after he leaves.

Russ Smith

FYI according to USA Today, Mayo officially signed an LOI to USC. They said he got a 29 on his ACT and is on track to qualify for USC so now it just comes down to what the NCAA has to say on his amateur status.

__________________
“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo

Mulli

Where is the phenom Apple Juice Mustard going?

abomb

Wouldnt a 29 be in the 90th percentile?

http://www.actstudent.org/scores/norms1.html

Just sayin'.

Russ Smith

29 on ACT is roughly 1300 on SAT. WOuldn't shock me, Mayo is a bright kid, so is Bill Walker. the question on them was never were they smart. With Walker it was his temper and would he do the work, not could he. With mayo it was does he actually have his amateur status or not. I'd be pretty surprised if a high profile kid like Mayo tried anything funny on such a test as closely watched as he is.

I don't think he ever plays for USC but I actually hope he does, I think it would be great exposure for the Pac 10 to have a player like him in the conference.

__________________
“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo

Russ Smith

Gotta give Mayo credit for sense of humor.

"Los Angeles is a great basketball city and needs a (college) powerhouse," Mayo says.

__________________
“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo

Russ Smith

And the intrigue continues. A friend of mine is a professor at Cincinnati, last year he tipped me off they were about to suspend guys on the basketball team during the NIT and they did.

Anyhow he says there's a mini investigation brewing now in the area of questionable ACT test scores for certain student athletes and guess who's test score is at the center of the rumors, OJ Mayo.

Mayo's 29 surprised a lot of people but since it was his first time taking the test you couldn't say wow his score went up quickly. Then people started to pay attention to something OJ had said just a week earlier when he announced his list of final schools, that he'd be taking the ACT for the first time at the end of the month(November). One week later, he announced he'd signed with USC, and that he already had a 29 on his ACT. I remember a few UCLA fans pointing out it seemed odd that Mayo would have forgotten taking the ACT because he clearly said he'd take it for the first time end of November but there he was on November 15th with a test score in hand?

Apparently there's innuendo that several high profile prospects in the Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia areas all got passing ACT scores taking the test at the same time and same location.

The friend knows my obsession with Mayo so he emailed me yesterday saying don't be surprised if that ACT score is yanked.

__________________
“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo

MaoTosiFanClub

The only schools that still offered Mayo a scholi were Cincinnati (former Huggins), Kansas State (Huggins), Indiana (Kelvin Sampson), and USC (Tim Floyd). Make your own assumptions.

devilfan02

Didn't you say Mayo is a smart kid? He could have very easily got a legit 29 if thats the case. However, how stupid are these morons if they went to the same location, at the same time, and they all got high scores. Man, I wasn't even that stupid in high school

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devilfan02

Sampson has turned into quite the dirtbag. He's a good coach, it's to bad he will tarnish his accomplishments

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Russ Smith

Yeah he's a bright kid, 29 ACT bright who knows, but the score alone didn't make me think anything was up. But literally a week before he signed with USC, he announced his final recruiting list and said he'd be taking the ACT for the first time the end of that month, which is November. So how does he have a ACT score of 29 a week later? That's where the question started and apparently now there's possibly something shady going on.

The guy who told me mentioned Michael Beasley as another kid who's score is coming into question apparently taken same day same location, Beasley and Mayo are very good friends, he's the kid who was going to Charlotte, then Huggins hired an assistant from Charlotte and Beasley followed him to K State.

OBviously the part that sounds bad is if a group of high profile athletes all took the test at the same location same day, from different schools.

Many will recall years ago there was a huge scandal involving cheating on SAT's in LA that hit a lot of high profile athletes. UCLA was involved somewhat as was ASU as one of the guys who reportedly cheated was Tommie Prince. UCLA had rejected Prince's SAT score saying it had jumped so much they were certain it would be challenged anyways, Prince refused to retake it, so UCLA pulled his LOI and he wound up at ASU. Years later, Prince's name surfaced on a list of kids who had allegedly paid to have someone else take his SAT for him. In that case you had the same thing, guys from New York were flying to LA to take the SAT at this one location, in reality of course they were just paying to have someone take the test for them.

__________________
“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo