O.J. Mayo officially becomes a member of the Dallas Mavericks – NBA News
O.J. Mayo officially signed with the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday, essentially completing the Mavericks roster for next season.
The shooting guard signed a two year contract worth $4 million, with a player option in the final year. He was drafted in 2008 by the Memphis Grizzlies, and finished 2nd in the Rookie of the Year rankings behind Derrick
Rose of the Chicago Bulls. Mayo had an equally impressive sophomore season, but has since fallen off the NBA radar and taken the 6th man role for the Grizzlies over the past two seasons.
Moving to the Mavericks, Mayo feels he has a lot to prove.
"I think I'm a better player now than coming in (as a rookie). Even though the stats don't show it, I'm mentally and physically a better player. I'm just looking forward to going out there and getting the opportunity to show that
I'm a starting guard in this league and I can compete with the other starting guards in this league and compete at a high level,” said Mayo.
Mayo averaged 18.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists in his rookie season, and followed that up with season averages of 17.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3 assists. However, his performance has taken a slide in the past two seasons
and last season, he averaged only 12.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists.
Moving to Dallas, Mayo is hoping to be the starting shooting guard of the team in an attempt to revive his career. The Mavericks acquired Darren Collison and Dahntay Jones from the Indiana Pacers in a trade deal, and Collison is
the likely starter at point guard position. They are also looking to re-sign Delonte West, who was a combo guard for the Mavericks last season. West backed up Kidd at the one guard position last season and also started as shooting guard in some games as well.
Mayo is likely to be used in the same way, playing both positions depending on the requirement.
He was disappointed he did not receive big salary offers in the post season this year, and said he had considered joining the Chicago Bulls, Indiana Pacers, Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers before deciding in favour of Dallas.
"That's the way it goes," Mayo said. "That's part of the reason why you have to keep working; keep playing, and hopefully, it can open up at another time."
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