Seeing Stars

by Paragon SC on Jun 10, 2007 6:30 AM PDT in News

Both TrojanNYC and USC Sports Talk have the scoop on OJ Mayo arriving at school this week, as does Matthew Kredell

The most-anticipated recruit in USC basketball history is scheduled to arrive on campus Wednesday.

O.J. Mayo, the top-ranked player for the class of 2007 by many recruiting services, will be set up in a dorm room with fellow incoming freshman Marcus Simmons. They will both begin summer school classes June 27.

Mayo, who can play point guard or shooting guard, starred at Huntington High in West Virginia last year.

I would agree with that assessment. There is a lot riding on his arrival as USC basketball is coming into its own and starts to get more national recognition. There obviously are some questions with both Pruitt and Young off to the NBA as how this team will perform with all the new faces and a new leader at the helm. That coupled with the story of the official arrivals of both Mitch Mustain and Joe McKnight, from AOL FanHouse, starts the arrival of all the top talent that Pete Carroll and Tim Floyd have recruited over the past year.

USC continues to get national recognition for its recruiting, of course other programs get their talent as well but not the headlines and this drives you-know-who from across town nuts as they continue to wallow in the ineptness of the Karl Dorrell era and attempt to relive the Wooden years. Of course there are no guarantees, but SC continues to get the headlines while others can only attempt to set the record straight to fit their own twisted views. Do me a favor pal, you seem like a moderately smart guy so maybe you could prove something other than just speculation.

We only need the baseball program to get back on track. I will have more on that later today.

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"Reliving?"

I know USC gets the headlines, but I do disagree with this comment"...attempt to relive the Wooden years." I don't know anyone who is trying to do as you say, as every Bruin and Bruin fan I know is just excited that the Lavin years are over and it appears we have the right coach to lead UCLA to a title. We all know that there is nho "reliving" the Wooden years, the basketball landscape is too different to permit such a thing and not even the most zealous UCLA hoophead believes otherwise.

Also, while I don't put a lot of credence in conspiracy theories, I must say I did find the timing of the article regarding Billy Don Jackson to be, well, interesting. Perhaps the next time one of Carroll's kids gets in trouble I will see a full-length update on Daryl Henley.

by ucladj89 on Jun 10, 2007 6:43 PM PDT 0 recs

OK...

maybe not ALL ucla fans are attempting to relive the past. I really have more to say on this but can't do it now, I will try to say more later. But I didn't want to let your comment go unanswered.

by Paragon SC on Jun 12, 2007 3:19 AM PDT up 0 recs

Well...

The pessimist in me would believe that there is an interesting angle to the story you referenced above. Unfortunately, the press has dug themselves a hole with all the negative reporting they done over the years so they only have themselves to blame for the ridicule they get. This story is obviously an attempt at a "feel good" piece that just happened to include the angle of ucla athletics shortly after a player from SC is arrested for a DUI.

I think its great that this guy turned his life around and the actual charges and subsequent debt paid to society to me really isn't big deal. There is no question that this guy should get another shot at leading a productive life. I was more intrigued at the "academic" angle, for all the harping we hear about ucla's superior academics. I'm not foolish enough to paint the WHOLE institution as a bunch of dummies but I did find it ironic especially when the beat writer for ucla at the DN says the playing field isn't level because of SC's less stringent academic standards. Yes, I saw the thread over there and I am generally intrigued by some of things I saw in the comment thread. I am working on a post about that in the next day or so.

The other thing that is intriguing is that the story referenced and Darryl Henley both have convictions attached. Yes, there are a couple of instances of SC players currently serving or that have served time for crimes committed, but that just shows that both schools have had their issues and that no one is immune.

As for the Wooden thing, there are some that continue to believe that his 11 titles are THE standard. I would agree, that is an unbelievable accomplishment but the standards were different then so while I think it's a great story I think what Billy Donovan, Dean Smith and Coach K have done is far more impressive because of all the other intangibles that come with today's game. It's a lot tougher to consistently stay in the hunt for an NCAA Title let alone win back-to-back than it was thirty-plus years ago. Not sayin' it's right, JMO.

by Paragon SC on Jun 13, 2007 5:23 AM PDT up 0 recs

corrections

Wooden coached UCLA to 10 titles, not 11. As for comparing Wooden's accomplishments to Dean, Donovan, et al and deciding that Wooden's were lesser, I don't think I can change your mind, but I can say that I think you are mistaken. Bear in mind that early entry was not a major issue until the mid 90's, Wooden won five titles without Alcindor or Walton, and the 64-team field has led to the current champ playing only two more games to win a tile than the four games required to win in the Wooden years. Plus, the field only took conference champs and there were no cupcakes.

Also curious how you see Dean, Donovan and K as "more impressive." Dean won two titles in 30(IIRC) years of coaching, although he did have Carolina consistently in the tournament. Donovan did well (obviously) the past two years, but Florida has not been a FF regular under Donovan during his entire coaching tenure. Coach K has the best claim to Wooden's mantle-lots of FF, 3 NC, etc, but still-compared to 7 NC in a row, the first with no starter taller than 6'-5", two with no Alcindor or Walton, ten overall-sorry, this is just beyond anything any of the other pretenders can muster.

Its not as if the 60's and 70's were so long ago that the players and coaches are no better than a historical reference.

by ucladj89 on Jun 13, 2007 8:25 AM PDT up 0 recs

Wooden's record is impressive and not lesser

Just different.

Let me be clear- COACH WOODEN'S ACOMPLISHMENTS ARE VERY VERY IMPRESSIVE

But...

as you said players stayed all 4-5 years, 32 team tournament with no cup cakes etc.etc. So 10 wins, not 11 my mistake, certainly is a big deal but if we're going to rely on wins/titles that's a whole other can of worms.

My point on Duke and UNC was that they have stayed in the national spotlight with early leaving to the NBA, transfers, ESPN etc.etc. Agree on UF, but they need to be in the discussion because of 2 in-a-row. I don't think they are more impressive but definitely on par because the landscape has changed.

I would concede that it is probably apples and oranges but no less impressive. My point is there is room for both in order to have constructive discussions like you always bring to the table. It's others that refuse to acknowledge the accomplishments of Duke or UNC and get nasty with names like Rat Face etc. When that happens credibility goes south for the winter...permanently.

And I do think the 60's and 70's were a long time ago because of the changes we have seen in the game.

by Paragon SC on Jun 13, 2007 9:28 AM PDT up 0 recs

The problem with Florida

Their biggest accomplishment was getting the players to stay. Yes, they had to go through the tournament again, but they were huge favorites and had much more experience in the tournament than most of the teams they faced. If the North Carolina players from 2005 had stayed, they probably would have been huge favorites, and they would have had a great shot at winning again.

Donovan obviously did a good job in getting them to stay, but it's not really basketball related. That part was not coaching the team, it was managing the program. While getting players to stay in school should be commended in this era, it's not the same as winning 10 titles.

ESPN is a big reason for the success of schools like North Carolina and Duke, and even UCLA to a lesser extent. Because of ESPN, the top teams stay at the top. There is parity in college basketball, but only among a small group of teams. Also, other teams didn't win in the 60s/70s because UCLA was winning. Who knows how many teams would have won if there hadn't been John Wooden.

by SuperBruinMan on Jun 13, 2007 7:06 PM PDT up 0 recs

It is what it is...

Like I said before, Wooden didn't have to worry about players leaving and that is actually tougher on Donovan as Wooden's players were essentially locked into staying.

Donovan did have to worry and part of being a coach is discussing the future with your players. Regardless, he still had to win those games, just like coach Wooden did. I also agree on the affect that ESPN has on the game. I may not like a lot of things that Nestor says but I do agree with him about the east coast bias and ESPN is a big part of it.

by Paragon SC on Jun 13, 2007 7:22 PM PDT up 0 recs

"There is a lot riding on his arrival"

That's very true. If he has a good year and goes on to be a big success in the NBA, it could do wonders for the basketball team (kind of like how North Carolina is a giant in the sport with only 4 titles). If he does poorly, people may say Floyd doesn't get enough out of his players, or he has a bad system for developing players. If Mayo causes problems for the team, Floyd may hesitate to bench him, since he is the face of the team.

If I were a USC fan I would be a little worried by the discrepancy between how much he needs USC and how much USC needs him. He definitely would not have gone to college without the new age rule, so he may be playing this year for himself. It seemed to me that Durant may have played like that as well, but Durant's team was almost entirely freshmen, while USC will have Gibson, to whom Mayo should probably defer at first.

by SuperBruinMan on Jun 10, 2007 9:09 PM PDT 0 recs

KD had his head on straight

and there were not any problems (at least, that I was aware of).

OJ seems to as well...although there was the ref incident (which, looking at the film, looks more and more like he took a dive), I don't think Floyd would have taken him on if he didn't think OJ would be beneficial, not just for a year, but for the program.

Time will tell.

Fight on!!! Beat the Vandals!!!

by USCLink on Jun 11, 2007 2:29 AM PDT up 0 recs

About Durant

The couple times I saw him he took most of the teams shots, and looked much more to score than to create. While that attitude was fine since he was the undisouted leader, Mayo will be in a different situation. If Mayo does act like a ballhog (not saying that he will, but you never can know in advance) there are teammates who could rightfully be offended.

We'll have to wait and see.

by SuperBruinMan on Jun 11, 2007 5:43 PM PDT up 0 recs