Was O.J. Mayo's freshman campaign a success?

Pro:

• Mayo set USC's freshman scoring record and three-point record.
• Mayo led the Trojans to a 4th-place finish in the Pac-10, two spots above media expectations.
• Just imagine what would have happened without Mayo. He stepped up big-time and filled a lot of the scoring vacuum created by last year's departures.

Con:

• With all the hype, USC got bounced early from the NCAA Tournament.
• USC also failed to surprise anybody in the Pac-10 Tournament.
• Mayo frequently forced shots and wasn't "Mr. Clutch." Even though he did a lot with what he had, it often felt like he was a big fish in a small pond.

Now the speculation will begin on whether Mayo (and Davon Jefferson and Taj Gibson) will leave for the NBA. If you missed it, here are the top reasons for Mayo to stay and the top reasons for Mayo to go.

Comments

[scfan]

I am so tired the our pathetic program keep being bounced by others. tonight, even a one-man team beat us. we are so bad compared to UCLA. are we SC just hype and no skills. we have all the talents. we SC just a bunch of BIG TIME CHOKERS.

Well, at least we still one school from LA go to Final Four.

[gerrrg]

I know if it was me, I'd be so pissed off for having exited the tourney so quickly (faster than last year), I'd vow to come back next year and win it all....

but I'm not Mayo, Hackett, Gibson or Jefferson.

Just saying those four names together, and thinking about DeRozan makes one salivate, and hope that they stay one more year.

[nomatter]

i agreed with scfan that SC looked so bad but with so much talent. i don't think it will matter even if they all come back because they will find a way to F up.

it's a reflection of the coach and more importantly, the school. not organized at all.

[Desmo]

Who says USC has all the talent. The best player on the floor was Beasley, followed by Bill Waker. OJ was the third or fourth best talent on the floor.

Davon? Give me a break, He does one thing, he dunks. No defense, no rebounding, can't put the ball on the floor, can't play with his back to the basket, no desire. Davon has a career overseas at best. The NBA? Can you say D-League.

Taj: Too small to play power forward, not enoguh of an outside game to play small forward. Another D-League talent.

Hackett: Plays defense, will be very offensively challenged in the NBA.

Lewis: Does one thing and one thing only. Shoots threes. And inconsistently at best.

That's it, that's the Trojan starting five. I would have to say we were vastly, vastly overrated, as is the Pac 10.

[pk-in-the-mesa]

Well they had a bad year from the start and injuries play a big part in team chem. but there are not any lottery picks in this line-up. Hack and lewis will stay and i really don't care about Mayo and Devon, Gibson needs to work on 15-19ft shot and freethrows if he whats to play in NBA. so lets hope we get some pf and centers next year will have to come from JC there is nobody left in HS 08 class

[pk-in-the-mesa]

Tim might think about a bigger player rotation next year so when there is a couple of injuries they will be more competitive. And he needs to interview players before giving a free ride, NO MORE 1 AND DONE IT WILL ONLY TAKE YOUR PROGRAM DOWN

Adam can you please follow Kam bros and drop the spam thing to post

[gerrrg]

Whoa man, don't be so hard on them; this is a team that lost their two best scorers in Young and Pruitt.

Having your freshmen account for the majority of scoring is not a reasonable way to get deep in the NCAA. Texas and Durant failed last year to get past USC, despite Durant being one of the best players in the country. Did you watch Oden last year? He was a really great center and was picked #1. But he basically allowed himself to be left out of the game last year in the NCAA 64 game against Tenn, scoring only 9 points. Yeah, they made it to the finals, but the only game where he scored over 20 pts was in that loss in the final to Florida.

Most schools (and just about all athletic sports teams) need to have kids stick around for awhile before they can go deep in the NCAA, USC Men's Basketball is no exception. This time next year, the guys may very well be in the final four, if they come back.

[dbmitch]

I really love the folks who never post anything, then when we lose, they are embarrassed and pop off about how bad or overrated we were.

gerrrg is absolutely correct. Young and Pruitt were expected back, Pruitt especially. Lewis is inconsistent, but he is also a sophomore. Hackett is a sophomore. Jefferson has been out of organized ball for almost 2 years.

The guy popping off that everyone is D-League needs to find a clue.

Gibson can very much be an NBA player, but he is playing center for USC when he should be at the power forward. He has a medium range game but is rarely able to use it because the Trojans need for him down low.

Your right about Jefferson if he leaves now. He really improved this year on defense, but he needs to develop some toughness if he wants to play at the next level.

Hackett is the perfect college player. Tough, heady, and a leader. He will be around for the next two years where he might very well develop as a good bench guy in the NBA. Or he will go home to Italy and make a decent living in the Italian league. But that is 2 years away.

Lewis has an excellent shot from either corner. From other 3 point spots, not so much. Again, only a sophomore, that will develop. He has also shown he can be a slasher as well as a lock down defender. Again, inconsistent, but this will all develop over the next 2 years.

Then there is Simmons and Cunningham who were injured this year that were counted on this year and hurt our depth.

So everyone chill. We are all disappointed, but the rips are really showing a lack of knowledge about the program.

[Bill Baldwin, Jr.]

Leading up to our "one and done" here in March Madness,I watched a number of games over the last two weeks and it became pretty clear to me that this USC team was really not that good.

Yes, in spots it played well, but overall, last year's team was much better. Experience, for one thing, but something more: putting on the USC uniform meant something to senior Lodrick Stewart and juniors Nick Young and Greg Pruitt.The same could be said about Hackett and Gibson this season, but I'm sorry, the idea that one or more players are only going to be here for one year and then off to the NBA.....it's not good for the players or the program. Frankly, as Bobby Knight says, the NCAA should step in and put a stop to the practice.

O.J. Mayo has a lot of talent: will be make the world forget about Oscar Robertson or Michael Jordan anytime soon? That answer would be no. And as for Davon Jefferson: look I wish the guy only good things, but he's a 21 year old freshman who plays like he's about 19, and would be very smart to spend at least another year to two years at SC learning to play the game. Gibson and Hackett could also benefit from a junior season at USC.

The O.J. Mayo era, if it's over, should be the first and last such "one and done" experiment. I would strongly urge USC to say to recruits, we are not interested in being your one season bus station on your way to immortality as a Memphis whatever: You can't give us three years of your time, minimum, then go somewhere else. Seriously. We have enough gifted, dedicated athletes at USC in all sports that if men's basketball can't hack it on a par with football, track and field, swimming, women's soccer or volleyball, then it's not the end of the world. This is the University of Southern California, not some backwater diploma mill.

As for the coach, I believe Tim Floyd is a good one. I'm not sure he's the right guy for USC, but let's evaluate that after another year.. In the meantime, to O.J. Mayo, if you're out of here, good luck in the NBA. If you're coming back.I'd think real seriously about dropping the OJ part. See, there's already been one guy here, Heisman Trophy, great guy right up until the time most think he murdered two people, and well, how about something inventive, Downtown Mayo, Virginia Mayo, I don't care, just lose the juice reference, ok?

[Pun Hayer]

Leave OJ alone.
He brought tons of excitement to USC, that does not just mean basketball. It's not his fault Gibson and Hackett regressed this year. I hope he stays in school, so he can finish what he starts. Floyd is smart and knows that he should take the money. Hopefully, he makes the right choice.

Thanks for an entertaining year OJ!