O.J. gets taste of L.A.

 

He's played in a pickup game against Kobe Bryant, dined with LeBron James and gone window shopping along Melrose Avenue, yet O.J. Mayo hasn't exactly gone Hollywood since arriving in Southern California. Far from it.

That much became clear several days ago when the USC freshman guard interrupted an interview to tell a homeless man sifting through a garbage bin outside the Galen Center that his shopping cart was rolling toward Figueroa Street. Mayo addressed the man, like he does all male adults, as "Sir."

Mayo's mode of transportation in the land of Bentleys and BMWs is a black beach cruiser, which he can still pedal fairly anonymously through campus. Two Trojans volleyball players spotted arguably the most heralded basketball recruit in USC history outside the Galen Center last week and didn't know who he was.

"L.A.'s a big city, and there's a lot going on," Mayo said when asked whether he was recognized everywhere he went. "A lot of people don't really take the time to look at other people unless you're a star with the paparazzi and all of that. But I've got my share of looks."

Mayo has been in the spotlight since he starred on the varsity team of Rose Hill Christian in Ashland, Ky., as a middle-schooler. He transferred to Cincinnati's North College Hill and then transferred again to his hometown school -- Huntington (W.Va.) High -- where he was a McDonald's All American.

Mayo has spent most of the two months since he arrived on campus immersing himself in basketball and books. He received a B-plus in two summer school classes -- Race, Class and Gender in American Film and a geography course.

"I just wanted to come out here and show people that I'm a student-athlete, and I just want an opportunity to take care of my family one day," he said.

The 6-foot-5, 200-pound guard has also displayed his considerable skills in pickup games throughout the area against an array of NBA players, including Bryant, Kevin Garnett, Jason Kidd, Mike Dunleavy Jr., Sam Cassell and J.J. Redick.

Was Mayo able to hold his own?

"I tried my best," he said. "A lot of people said they liked what they saw and said just continue working hard with the opportunity to be a special player in the league. " … Right now I'm just focusing on USC basketball and our team."

Projected as a lottery pick in whichever NBA draft he decides to enter, Mayo is also making time to soak in a bit of the L.A. lifestyle.

He checked out storefronts along Melrose Avenue in Hollywood.

"Just window shopping," he said. "I've got to get some money."

 

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