O.J. Mayo will get a chance to rejuvenate his career after signing with the Dallas Mavericks. Since becoming a 6th man off of the Memphis Grizzlies bench Mayo has not lived up to the hype that was placed on him coming out of USC. During Mayo’s first two seasons he showed flashes of what type of scorer he could be, but since then he has hit a plateau and has not shown much improvement.
When Mayo entered the league he was held to a high regard only coming second to Derrick Rose. Since then players such as Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook, and Eric Gordon have surpassed their fellow 2007 draftee and even exceeded their own expectations. Westbrook and Love are arguably the best players at their position and Eric Gordon just received a max deal contract. Mayo on the other hand is looking for a second chance.
I have watched O.J. Mayo play basketball for many years and I knew that a change of scenery is needed. With Rudy Gay and Mike Conley controlling the perimeter play and Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol controlling the paint there was little need for Mayo’s skillset.
Now that Mayo is in Dallas he will get a chance to play at a high level. It is probably not determined what role Mayo will play, but I am guessing he will be playing the Jason Terry role. Vince Carter started at the shooting guard position last season, but this is not the Vinsanity we use to watch in Toronto and in New Jersey. This guy resembles Arn Anderson more than the old Vince. With that being said it will give Mayo the opportunity to play freely without looking over his shoulder.
Time is still on Mayo’s side. Mayo will be entering his fifth season, but he is only 24 years old. I doubt that he will ever become the perennial All-Star that many people expected him to be when he entered the league, but I think he can be a player that averages 17 ppg or more if given a consistent role on the team.
It will be exciting to see Mayo perform with a re-tooled Mavericks team. With head coach Rick Carlisle’s approach he will every opportunity to succeed on the hardwood.
