O.J.? Oh no...

I'm angry with O.J. Mayo. Not because he's a punk who knocked down a referee during a high school game. Not because he's an arrogant, show boating, pot smoking high school basketball player straight out of "Above the Rim". Not even because his name is Ovinton J'Anthony - which is more of a reason to be angry with his parents. Instead, I'm angry because everyone still loves him. Why? After a 4 for 17 shooting night accompanied by a single rebound and a blown game winning three, the talk on ESPN isn't that MVP Michael Beasley looks ready to make a difference at Kansas State or that Gani Lawal could elevate Georgia Tech back to a Final Four team. Instead the story is O.J. Mayo and he couldn't be happier. It just goes to show you that no publicity is bad publicity.

When Mayo chose to attend USC, it was to the surprise of the media, his teammates, major college basketball programs, and USC coach Tim Floyd… who never actually sent him a recruitment letter. Can you blame him? Floyd is a basketball coach at a football school and is best known for leading the post Jordan bulls to a 15-67 record. What does he have to offer a top three talent? Well, nothing, he's Tim Floyd... but Southern Cal’s campus exists in the epicenter of Los Angeles, a city that loves its sports teams almost as much as it loves its trendy fashion, pretentious music, and vegan diets. By landing himself in L.A. Mayo has made the choice to look past college and begin marketing himself to the NBA crowd. He's made sure that he won’t be just another face that has passed through the halls of great programs like Duke, North Carolina, or even rival UCLA; instead he will BE Trojan basketball... so long as he's not a bust.

If you’re asking if this is a smart move, just look at Matt Leinart. He may work in Arizona, but for the four years prior to becoming an NFL quarterback, he was the golden boy of Los Angeles. He dated stars and showed up in magazines. He was on billboards, commercials, and even did an episode of Desperate Housewives. People in Los Angeles are still talking about getting an NFL team just to bring Leinart back so he can lead them to a Superbowl. The problem with this train of thought is that Leinart is a Heisman trophy winner who led his team to a national championship. O.J. Mayo hasn't done anything. Leinart had Bush, White, a better offensive line then the Arizona Cardinals and a great defense. Mayo has eight guys who play the same position he does. Even worse, Mayo is probably heading to the NBA the first chance he gets, which won't sit well with the USC faithful. That doesn't matter much to Mayo though. He's proven over the last year, and especially in last night's game, that all he cares about is himself.


Aside from Mayo, the McDonald's All-American game didn't disappoint. There were dunks and deep threes, a lot of talent and a lot of sheer athletic ability. Watching the game last night I was genuinely excited for the future of college basketball and thankful that these guys are forced to actually play there. Here's a break down of the standouts from last night:

O.J. Mayo (USC) - Needless to say, not impressive. He scored 12 points and had a rebound. I don't think he had any assists since that would require him passing, but I didn't check. He's athletic, fast and has a great build but he was overly selfish and took bad and unnecessary shots. He also could have tied it up in a 3 on 1 situation, but chose to jack up an errant three and lose the game. While he has shown that he can dominate against 10 awkward white guys from West Virginia, its a little different going against the caliber players that get chosen as All-Americans. If I’m wrong I’ll admit it. I guess we’ll have to see.

Nick Calathes (Florida) - Smart basketball player, great team player and great shooter. He has good range for his size but his size is the problem. He's weak and has to force up an awkward three point shot. The upside is that he's really good looking and every girl in America will want to make relations with him. If Billy Donovan stays in Florida, I like this kids chances in developing to a really great player.

Gani Lawal (Georgia Tech) - Powerful dunker and a great rebounder. He's perfect for Georgia Tech and would have helped them shut down Wendell White and destroy UNLV. He's strong enough to play in the NBA but not mature enough. Wait until he gets two or three years under his belt.

Kevin Love (UCLA) - Slow, strong, and boring. Rebounds well and follows really well. Good footwork and great fundamentals. Again though... slow and boring. By the way, these are all words I would have used to describe Tim Duncan in college. I hate the fact that he's playing at UCLA mostly because Arizona hasn't had an inside presence ever and I'm not looking forward to a couple more years of getting our asses kicked.

Michael Beasley (Kansas State) - One reporter called him Michael "Beastly", and while I don't appreciate the pun, it's quite an accurate description. The guy is big and strong, can shoot outside and can post up inside. He rebounds and he's not a bad passer. He scored 23 points and brought home the MVP. He also went to Oak Hill, the best basketball high school in the country. Downside? He's apparently very lazy in practice and can mail in games every so often. Bob Huggins at Kansas State will take care of that pretty quickly. Seriously, watch out for this kid.

Taylor King (Duke) - Not much to say about him because he wasn't featured much in the game. All I can say is that I'm convinced he could shoot 40% from the half court line. His range is beyond any high school kid I've seen. I'm always excited to see a kid like this go to Duke and learn how to play under Coach K. Perfect situation.

Kosta Koufos (Ohio State) - If Ohio State holds on to Oden and Conley and adds a kid like Koufos, then you should probably just write them into your bracket now. He's 7'1" and can shoot from deep much like Dirk, Bargnani, or Okur. He's slow and can't really drive, but once he's inside he can clean up after errant shots very well. Plus his name is Kosta and he smiles like the foreign kid from Can't Hardly Wait. What's not to love?

Jerryd Bayless (Arizona) - Love him. Couldn't be happier with the new Wildcat. Smart player, excellent at the drive and dish, athletic, great shot, has deep range and isn't afraid to take shots. His defense was also much of the reason O.J. Mayo was ineffective yesterday. Much like current Arizona phenom Marcus Williams, he's way too thin right now. He also isn't that impressive at running the point, but he works with Mike Bibby in the off season and will hopefully end his career with a similar result, National Champion.

I'm a bit giddy right now... Enjoy the Final Four.