Stephen Jackson was backing me down and hitting jump shots. For the first time in my entire life I...

Stephen Jackson was backing me down and hitting jump shots. For the first time in my entire life I had to sit down at the end of a game because I couldn't guard my man. From that day on, I was like, 'I have to get better at ball handling and being a lead guard.' There may be a ceiling for me at shooting guard. Every night I'm battling guys 6-6, 6-7 and it's kind of tough for me.

O.J. Mayo, in Memphis Commercial Appeal

over 1 year ago djturtleface 14 comments 1 recs |

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whoa.

Posting and Toasting: DWTDD.

by Seth on Jun 16, 2010 10:05 AM CDT reply actions

Crazy a dude that should have as big of a head as Mayo would be real like this...

Straight Outta Vancouver - The Memphis Grizzlies DO Still Exist

by djturtleface on Jun 16, 2010 10:09 AM CDT up reply actions

Mayo's seemed consistently intelligent to me, at least from the distance of Minnesota.

The knock on him has always partly been that he didn’t develop the PG skills everyone expected, and that he’s undersized at the two. He’s spent time the last two offseasons plugging away at that problem. Early last year he talked about it…. then in the Team USA tryouts he got the usual shoots-his-own criticism, a bit. He may be an egomaniac – I’m not sure who, given the attention focused on him all his life, wouldn’t turn out to be – but he’s no fool.

A certain amount of candor during the draft and the subsequent summer always gives us stuff like this…. Dexter Pittman is particularly cool, among the pool of aspiring later picks this year. These people know their strengths and weaknesses. They’re working, intelligently, to improve.

Cool sign in him, though. Summer league, too. Excellent attitude.

"Sarchasm": (var. sarcasm) The gap in understanding which occurs when one attempts to be self-deprecating on behalf of others.

by feral on Jun 16, 2010 7:00 PM CDT up reply actions

Oh totally agreed...

I’ve always loved Mayo’s attitude, but admitting your faults goes above and beyond the regular duties of NBA players.

Straight Outta Vancouver - The Memphis Grizzlies DO Still Exist

by djturtleface on Jun 17, 2010 12:42 AM CDT up reply actions

I am simultaneously

intrigued and terrified at the possibilities.

http://hardwoodparoxysm.com

by Ridiculous Matt on Jun 16, 2010 12:44 PM CDT reply actions

Do you still maintain that Mayo (not Rudy) is the franchise cornerstone?

Straight Outta Vancouver - The Memphis Grizzlies DO Still Exist

by djturtleface on Jun 16, 2010 2:45 PM CDT up reply actions

at this point

even with all the advanced success, I’m not sure either of them is. I’m entering “Marc Gasol is the only one untradeable” territory.

http://hardwoodparoxysm.com

by Ridiculous Matt on Jun 16, 2010 4:06 PM CDT up reply actions

I've got Marc, Rudy, and gasp Z-Bo...

All as keepers — with Marc and Rudy as untradeable, and Z-Bo only getting moved for a player nearly as productive (so, pretty much untradeable with his rep).

Straight Outta Vancouver - The Memphis Grizzlies DO Still Exist

by djturtleface on Jun 16, 2010 4:34 PM CDT up reply actions

I'd move Z-Bo

if the right deal came along for a stretch 4 with upside.

I’d trade Rudy for a significant upgrade at any position (Mayo’s comboness makes this pill go down easier). If someone wants to give him a near-max, I’d be all about capitalizing on a S&T.

Pretty much anything that gets Conley out of the starter role I’m pretty happy with. I don’t want to lose Z, but the charges he’ll be facing eventually have me very nervous.

http://hardwoodparoxysm.com

by Ridiculous Matt on Jun 16, 2010 4:57 PM CDT up reply actions

Who can you trade either Rudy or Z-Bo for...

That fulfills those requirements? Agreed that you make any trades that improve the team now AND improve the team in the future, but those kind of deals are few and far between.

If you’re sign and trading Rudy then you save some money and get back a couple 1st rounders. If you’re lucky you get like a Corey Brewer type guy too. I’m not sure any team has ever truly capitalized on a sign and trade.

Could you trade Z-Bo for Kevin Love or David West straight up? If not, its hard to pull the trigger on anything less.

Straight Outta Vancouver - The Memphis Grizzlies DO Still Exist

by djturtleface on Jun 16, 2010 5:07 PM CDT up reply actions

Corey Brewer is a Zen experience.

No matter how many times you go back to that river, it’s always new. Every layup, every shot – new and fresh again.

You probably would do much better to keep Ronnie B on. I devised a drinking game involving Corey early last year. Most frequent result: Attempting to drink, you toss the glass back at a bit of an angle, scattering liquor over your ear. The decision to pick up the option year on his rookie deal was highly controversial, on the grounds that comparable players are available for far less.

In Minnesotaland, we basically fear overpaying on Rudy Gay. He’s regarded as franchise talent without the motivation, essentially. The suspicion is that the Knicks or his hometown Wizards will wind up doing so anyway, in mid- or late free agency. (If the Wolves added #1 picks to such a S&T, they couldn’t possibly do their own unprotected…. but then that’s way down the road on any such deal.)

"Sarchasm": (var. sarcasm) The gap in understanding which occurs when one attempts to be self-deprecating on behalf of others.

by feral on Jun 17, 2010 9:56 AM CDT up reply actions

awesome

I am traveling to Minnesota next week for my 1st real visit other than the airport. I hope to see Darko Milicic and play the Corey Brewer drinking game with him! or maybe kevin McHale in a 2010 Celtics Championships hat he will autograph for me? And Grizzlies Marko Jaric Jersey!

by xangoir on Jun 17, 2010 10:38 AM CDT up reply actions