O.J. Mayo reportdley received $30k worth of gifts from associates while attending USC. EDIT:OTL Vid

[dyyhard]

He told me he had a bicycle to ride around campus
yeah, but what you got off-campus??

Former sneaker executive Sonny Vaccaro, a friend who said he had Mayo over to his home for several meals during the basketball season, said he did not believeMayo was complicit in any misconduct.

"He's a bright kid," Vaccaro said. "I would be shocked if something was happening and he was part of it."

Vaccaro said he advised Mayo not to let anyone "own your soul because you're going to make a lot of money some day and to give it all out becausesomeone gave you $5 today isn't worth it."

If Mayo was accepting lavish gifts, Vaccaro said, it didn't show.

"He didn't have anything," Vaccaro said. "He told me he had a bicycle to ride around campus. There weren't any material things that Iwitnessed. There were no watches and diamonds and chains around his neck. He couldn't go home [for Christmas break] and stuff like that."

Before he enrolled at USC, Mayo told The Times that he had distanced himself from any overtures from would-be agents.

"I haven't gotten any benefits, nothing," he said before playing in the McDonald's All-American high school game in March 2007. "I stilllive in the same house, my momma drives the same car, she has the same job. . . . As long as we have goals, we're not going to have time for the agents andstuff. We're all going to be focused. We all have the same goal, to win a national championship."

 

[b1lly hoyle]

Him and his boy to his right missed it on the pants.

Those jeans are terrible.

Curious about those Forces though...Nike tryin hard to get in his ear.

And all day on sports radio shows I heard about OJ slippin in the draft, potentially out of the lottery even? No way. This dude has great poise and creativityaround the basket. Besides the fact he IS 20, he just played all year with tons of confidence and he look experienced. With some focus he's a tremendouson-ball defender too. No way he gets outside of top7...definitely a great talent.

 

[henz0]

Recruiting Himself to cleveland

 

[dyyhard]

The "next LeBron James" came to watch the real thing Monday, but he wasn't talking about the headlines he was making across the country.

The biggest celebrity guest at The Q was O.J. Mayo, the former Southern Cal basketball player who was accused this week of accepting about $30,000 in cash andgifts from a Los Angeles event promoter. Mayo declared for this year's NBA draft after one year in college and is a projected lottery selection.

Mayo wouldn't talk about the accusations -- other than to deny the claims -- but did talk about his favorite player: LeBron James, naturally.

Mayo was dubbed the "next LeBron James" while in high school in Cincinnati, and said he has befriended James since the two connected about four yearsago. The two sometimes trade phone calls and text messages, and James has offered advice to the one following in his footsteps.

"Stay humble," Mayo said, "and work hard."

Mayo, who was wearing a dapper tan suit coat and flashy watch and diamond earrings, said he bought his $850 courtside seats himself.

 

[chikickz]

Dude didn't have that much of a risk from taking those things.

The player has ZERO risk. They never have and never will share any of the risk.

Why aren't reporters asking Mayo why he's calling ESPN from the cell phone that ESPN actually has documents proving it was paid for by Guillory?

Where is Mayo's money coming from to purchase these clothes, these courtsides seats, these airfares to travel to Cleveland? Bueller? Bueller?

 

[mustbetheshoe58]

i smell a crook

 

[b1lly hoyle]

Where is Mayo's money coming from to purchase these clothes, these courtsides seats, these airfares to travel to Cleveland? Bueller? Bueller?
Once the buzzer sounds on his last NCAA game...dude is free to take as much money/whatever type of advance he wants to. He's considered a Proright away and w/ the hiring of an agent comes an advance to be paid back upon receiving his contract/endorsements. He bought the tickets himself (perhaps) andthe money is all from an advance through Calvin @ BDA I'm sure. Which is perfectly fine. He's a pro now, and any money/material goods given to him isalright.

 

[chikickz]

B1LLY HOYLE: I wasn't questioning the legality of the funds. Just wondering why the reporters do not get this question answered definitively.

 

[kingtre]

Originally Posted by dyyhard

Mayo, who was wearing a dapper tan suit coat and flashy watch and diamond earrings, said he bought his $850 courtside seats himself.

this is the most surprising thing in the thread

how he get themseats for only $850

 

[ricardo malta]

B1LLY HOYLE: I wasn't questioning the legality of the funds. Just wondering why the reporters do not get this question answered definitively.
Because it's common knowledge where the money is coming from. Everyone knows about advances from agents, huge loans being approved, etc. Anybody remember the Chicago Hoops show when Eddy Curry was rollin' in the escalade after his high school season, or when Lebron copped the H2?

 

[you big dummy]

Mayo, who was wearing a dapper tan suit coat and flashy watch and diamond earrings, said he bought his $850 courtside seats himself.

@ anyone that believes that

 

[shannonscrooks]

I think Lenny Cooke still owes his agent money.

 

[alejanz28]

Who cares, this dude wasnt going to be in college for four years anyway. If he could have, he wouldve went straight to the league and non of this nonsensewouldve mattered.

at how the NCAA pimps these kidsdaily for hundreds of millions and then gets upset and wants to take away their accomplishments when these gifted athletes take advantage of the perks they getfor being famous.

I wonder if Tim Duncan took advantage of his stardom in college?

 

[gunna get it]

Shannon, I got boys who didnt stick with NFL teams and they're still payin off advances from Agents from like 4 yrs ago.

its a complete win/win situation for the agent, U make it and they bank of you, U dotn make it, and Ur in debt to them for *#$! U cant afford at all

 

[grittyman20]

And all day on sports radio shows I heard about OJ slippin in the draft, potentially out of the lottery even?
Talk radio is full of it. OJ is a top 3 talent (but Lopez probably will make him drop to 4)

 

[bigtomgetsgwap]

Originally Posted by alejanz28


Who cares, this dude wasnt going to be in college for four years anyway. If he could have, he wouldve went straight to the league and non of this nonsense wouldve mattered.

at how the NCAA pimps these kids daily for hundreds of millions and then gets upset and wants to take away their accomplishments when these gifted athletes take advantage of the perks they get for being famous.

I wonder if Tim Duncan took advantage of his stardom in college?

My thoughts exactly...the only people that will get in trouble now are the people at USC

 

[rsdplaya]

it's just bogus how espn comes out like this is breaking news...you hate to assume this is happening all around the country, but everybody knows it is.there's no way to stop this from happening either.

 

[lazyj10]

Originally Posted by dyyhard

The "next LeBron James" came to watch the real thing Monday, but he wasn't talking about the headlines he was making across the country.

The biggest celebrity guest at The Q was O.J. Mayo, the former Southern Cal basketball player who was accused this week of accepting about $30,000 in cash and gifts from a Los Angeles event promoter. Mayo declared for this year's NBA draft after one year in college and is a projected lottery selection.

Mayo wouldn't talk about the accusations -- other than to deny the claims -- but did talk about his favorite player: LeBron James, naturally.

Mayo was dubbed the "next LeBron James" while in high school in Cincinnati, and said he has befriended James since the two connected about four years ago. The two sometimes trade phone calls and text messages, and James has offered advice to the one following in his footsteps.

"Stay humble," Mayo said, "and work hard."

Mayo, who was wearing a dapper tan suit coat and flashy watch and diamond earrings, said he bought his $850 courtside seats himself.

That's sad, on a few levels.

 

[gunner thirtytwo]

Originally Posted by bigtomgetsgwap

Originally Posted by alejanz28


Who cares, this dude wasnt going to be in college for four years anyway. If he could have, he wouldve went straight to the league and non of this nonsense wouldve mattered.

at how the NCAA pimps these kids daily for hundreds of millions and then gets upset and wants to take away their accomplishments when these gifted athletes take advantage of the perks they get for being famous.

I wonder if Tim Duncan took advantage of his stardom in college?

My thoughts exactly...the only people that will get in trouble now are the people at USC

EXACTLY. Whether right, wrong, fair or unfair, it's their job to do their due diligence. Claiming ignorance doesn't really work here. If itlooks like a rat and smells like a rat...

 

[2wenty thre3]

Originally Posted by you big dummy

Mayo, who was wearing a dapper tan suit coat and flashy watch and diamond earrings, said he bought his $850 courtside seats himself.

@ anyone that believes that

credit baby, dude will be cakin soon enough

 

[dyyhard]

DeMar DeRozan might ask out if USC is punished in Mayo case
Don Ryan / Associated Press
DeMar DeRozan of Compton High soars in for a layup while competing for the USA junior national team on April 12. The high-flying, 6-foot-6 guard, who scored 17points in the game to lead the U.S. to a 98-78 victory, has committed to USC.
All-American guard is said to be watching NCAA inquiry of Trojans. Father: 'He wants to go there and help build the basketball program, but we can't dothat with a cloud hanging over the school's head
By Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
May 14, 2008
USC's top basketball recruit might change his college choice if the Trojans face severe sanctions by the NCAA over illegal extra benefits allegedlyreceived by O.J. Mayo.

DeMar DeRozan, one of the nation's most highly sought high school players, signed with USC in November, but his father and older half-brother said Tuesdayhe might consider other schools if the Trojans sustain a quick and heavy penalty.



* NCAA investigating allegations involving USC's Mayo
NCAA investigating allegations involving USC's Mayo
* Tito Maddox sees himself in O.J. Mayo saga
Tito Maddox sees himself in O.J. Mayo saga

"This is a good wake-up call," Jermaine DeRozan, DeMar's half-brother, said. "I'm just hoping SC doesn't get put on probation [If itdoes], I would get . . . out of there."

Recruits who sign letters of intent are required to gain a release from that school to be eligible immediately without sitting out a season.

The NCAA and Pacific 10 Conference are investigating Mayo because of allegations that he received tens of thousands of dollars in cash and gifts from RodneyGuillory, a Los Angeles events promoter said to be acting as a representative of a sports agency.

Guillory reportedly received about $200,000 in cash plus a $50,000 sports utility vehicle from Bill Duffy Associates, funneling about $30,000 to Mayo, whorecently announced BDA vice president Calvin Andrews would be his agent as a pro.

If the allegations are proved true, Mayo could be declared retroactively ineligible. And if the NCAA is convinced USC took part or knew about any violations,the athletic program could be punished by losing scholarships or being banned from postseason play.

"If they can't make the tournament next year, that's what we're going to college for," Jermaine DeRozan said. "If you do your oneyear, you at least have to shine and get to the tournament with the intentions of winning it or get to the Elite Eight."

Mayo and Bill Duffy Associates have denied any wrongdoing. USC says it is cooperating with the NCAA and that circumstances surrounding the player fromHuntington, W.Va., were thoroughly examined before Mayo enrolled.

DeRozan's father, Frank, said DeMar woke him up Sunday after the accusations, made by former Mayo confidant and Guillory associate Louis Johnson, becamepublic when broadcast on the ESPN show, "Outside the Lines."

"He brought it to my attention and said, 'Man, that's messed up,' " Frank DeRozan said.

Compton High Coach Tony Thomas said he recently had been contacted by assistant coaches from two of the Final Four teams -- which were UCLA, North Carolina,Kansas and Memphis -- inquiring about DeRozan's availability.

"They wanted to make sure if anything happened, don't forget about them," Thomas said.

DeMar, a 6-foot-6 shooting guard, is a McDonald's All-American who averaged 30.6 points, 8.9 rebounds and 4.0 steals as a senior. As to what his son'scollege alternatives might be, Frank DeRozan said, "His main thing is, he wants to go [to USC] and help build the basketball program, but we can't dothat with a cloud hanging over the school's head.

"We're just trying to see how things play out. He doesn't want to leave home because his mother is still sick" -- she suffers from lupus --"and isn't getting any better."

Jermaine DeRozan said the allegations surrounding Mayo have served as a cautionary tale for his brother. "It's good that it happened before ithappened to us and the warning signs are out there," he said. He added the allegations have left his brother "scared" and questioning themotivations of those trying to get close to him.

"With this stuff with O.J., our circle is getting a little tighter," Jermaine said.

Frank DeRozan said Guillory once attempted to recruit DeMar to play for his Amateur Athletic Union team, and when his advances were rebuffed, Guillory toldother AAU coaches that DeMar was 15 years old when in fact he was 13.

The family then had to go to some lengths to straighten out the discrepancy.

"He was real mad because DeMar wouldn't play on his team," Frank DeRozan said of Guillory. "He went out and lied to a couple of other AAUcoaches and said DeMar was older than he was. I said [to Guillory], 'You can't say nothing else to me.' "

Guillory could not be reached for comment.

Meanwhile, the source of the allegations against Guillory and Mayo told The Times via e-mail Tuesday he would not comment on the situation for now, referringall inquiries to his Los Angeles attorney.

Louis Johnson wrote, "When the appropriate time comes, I will address a lot of the issues that my revelations have recently uncovered."

Times correspondent Victoria Sun contributed to this report.

 

[dyyhard]

BASKETBALL

[h1]Tito Maddox sees himself in O.J. Mayo saga[/h1]

Former Compton player says promoter Guillory befriended him as he had NBA-bound former USC star, now facing allegations of NCAA violations. 'Watch the fast-talkers,' Maddox warns aspiring athletes.

By Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
May 13, 2008

Tito Maddox is watching the O.J. Mayo saga unfold, "stunned by the parallel" of reports illustrating allegations that cash and gifts prohibited by college rules were funneled to the NBA-bound college star.

"Same story, same guy," Maddox, 26, said Monday in front of his Carson home.


[h5]Related Content[/h5]

• 
  Tito Maddox
• 
  NCAA investigating allegations involving USC's Mayo

• Key players in the O.J. Mayo saga

Maddox was talking about Los Angeles events promoter Rodney Guillory, whom Maddox said he was befriended by in the summer of 1998, just before his senior year at Compton High.

Guillory faces allegations that he provided Mayo cash, meals, clothes, a flat-screen television, cellphone service and other services on behalf of Bill Duffy Associates Sports Management, the agency the top guard prospect recently announced would represent him as he turned pro.

The allegations were made by former associate Louis Johnson on a segment of ESPN's "Outside the Lines" broadcast Sunday. Johnson said Guillory received about $200,000 and a sports utility vehicle from BDA, sharing an estimated $30,000 of what he received with Mayo.

For Maddox, it was a story that rang all too familiar.

"He was working for some agents, talking about what they can do for me and what I need," Maddox recalled of his first meetings with Guillory.

"I was just trying to help my family."

Maddox added, "He seemed cool, he seemed like he had my best interests at heart. We'd go out to eat around some games, he'd be at my practices, he'd come over to my house. . . . Just being around him, spending time with him, he won my trust."

Maddox went on to play at Fresno State, and his relationship with Guillory forced his college team to suffer through a self-imposed two-year probation and lose three scholarships in December 2002 after Maddox revealed to the Fresno Bee that he had accepted illegal benefits.

Elaborating Monday, Maddox, who along with his wife and two children resides in a modest single-story home, said his involvement with Guillory serves as a cautionary tale to young athletes whose families are struggling financially.

"You've got to watch out for snakes, the people who try to steer you toward others so they can make money. Watch the fast-talkers," he said.

Maddox said his paths crossed with Guillory at a time when his mother, Gloria, was raising him and his three younger siblings in a single-parent Compton home.

"She was struggling to make ends meet," he said.

Maddox was suspended for the first eight games of the 2000 season after he admitted that Guillory provided him and then-USC forward Jeff Trepagnier with airline tickets to meet with Las Vegas-based agents Ron and Ken Delpit of Franchise Sports. Guillory attended the meeting, Maddox said.

"We stayed at their home; Rodney wanted me to see what they had to offer," Maddox said. "They wanted me to sign something before I left, saying they'd represent me after college. Same with Jeff."

Trepagnier, now playing in a professional league in France, was briefly suspended by USC in December 2000.

Said Maddox: "That's why I can't believe USC let this guy [Guillory] come back around after our trouble."

Maddox said his unfamiliarity with NCAA rules led him to ask the Delpits, "What can they do to help my family?"

"They let me know they could help me, they put it out there on the table: 'If you come with us, we can help your mom, brothers and sister with whatever they need,' " he recalled. "That's all I cared about. I didn't know the rules then, and of course they didn't explain it."

Attempts to reach Guillory and the Delpits on Monday were unsuccessful.

Maddox said a family member of the Delpits delivered Gloria Maddox a newer-model Nissan Altima during the 2000-01 school year, and that he received a 1997 Ford Explorer.

Cash payments were delivered in envelopes to him at Fresno State, Maddox said, and to his mother -- sometimes hand-delivered by Guillory -- at her home.

"Rodney was the middleman," Maddox said. "We'd get $1,500 every month for about a year and a half. Almost $30,000."

Maddox also attended a Lakers game courtesy of the Delpits, he said. Similarly, Mayo while at USC was ordered to repay to charity the ticket price of a Lakers ticket he received from Carmelo Anthony, a Duffy-represented NBA player.

Maddox, in his only college season, was the Western Athletic Conference's freshman of the year, averaging 13.5 points and eight assists. But he boarded another illegally paid-for flight to visit his girlfriend in El Paso in 2001 and Fresno State ruled he would be ineligible for the 2001-02 season. Maddox opted to declare for the 2002 draft.

Before being selected 38th overall by the Houston Rockets, he dumped the Delpits in favor of another agent.

"No one had heard of them," Maddox explained. "I believed they couldn't do me any service at all. No GM was going to be listening to them.

"Rodney was pretty upset. . . . On the phone he told me, 'You're making a mistake. They can get you where you need to go, and you can't get there by yourself.' But honestly, I had heard so many bad things about them I wasn't even worried about it."

Maddox was in the NBA only one season, collecting a salary estimated at $300,000 and playing a high of 11 minutes in one game.

He was cut the next year by the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Last July, he was forced to undergo surgery to remove a cancerous brain tumor. He's now cancer-free, he said, and would like to get back in shape and play professionally again.

"I just needed to be more patient," he said of his shortened college and professional careers, "and understand you've got to pay your dues."

[email protected]

 

[deepinthajeep]

Originally Posted by ShannonsCrooks

I think Lenny Cooke still owes his agent money.

A Lenny Cooke sighting??

And why is this tread still going. It's not like this doesn't happen around the country. Wasn't LeBron pushing a hummer before hegraduated??
OJ kicked dude out the crew. Dude snitchin. It's on ESPN.

 

[ricardo malta]

And why is this tread still going.
The DeRozan and Tito Maddox articles were pretty insightful no?

I wonder if UCLA is gonna throw it all on the table to bag Demar. They're already so guard heavy but he wants to be close to home so it seems like thebest fit.

 

[ThaxbyChamblis]

Tito Maddox

Haven't heard that name in a WHILE....

Glad to see he got over that cancer scare...