Baggage carries little weight

Allegations shouldn't hurt Mayo in draft

O.J. Mayo has a sweet jump shot, nice height and size. NBA executives say he's a good kid, too. The Southern Cal star is also a better defender than many give him credit for. And when it's all said and done, that's what the NBA will care about, and not the recent allegations against him.

Despite charges that Mayo violated NCAA rules by accepting cash and gifts, four high-ranking NBA team executives said that won't hurt him in this year's draft.

"The situation that has received so much publicity recently, it's allegations and hasn't been totally proven," said Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace. "Secondly, that is a collegiate issue. It's not one for us in his draft evaluation process to have great concern over."

Another NBA GM with a lottery pick said, "You judge a player on his body of work, his workout."

An NBA assistant GM said, "There might be one or two teams that won't want to be a part of the drama, if you will, and the constant questions of who is around. But from what I hear, he's not a bad kid."

Louis Johnson, a former Mayo confidant and sportswriter who has a cocaine conviction, told ESPN that Los Angeles-based hoops promoter Rodney Guillory was given an SUV and about $200,000 in cash, funneling some of the money to Mayo on behalf of BDA Sports Management.

The organization has strongly denied those claims, but the accusations have hurt BDA's recruiting of draft prospects. BDA's NBA clients, including Steve Nash, Yao Ming, Carmelo Anthony, and Greg Oden, appear to be standing by the agency.

A source close to Mayo's situation said there is evidence showing that Guillory was financially able to support himself and didn't use BDA's aid. Mayo told the Globe last Monday that he "didn't do anything wrong."

"I didn't accept anything," Mayo said. "I'm kind of upset because I found out about this on Mother's Day and I want to just enjoy the preparation for the draft. But at the same time, it gives me a lot of fire. I'm just going to work harder to resolve a frustrating situation."

Mayo has been in Chicago working out with the renowned Tim Grover in preparation for draft workouts after completing his finals at USC. The 6-foot-4-inch, 210-pounder averaged 20.7 points, 3.3 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.5 steals while shooting 40.9 percent from 3-point range as a true freshman last season.

"He's been a well-known, high-visibility player since he was a teenager," Wallace said. "O.J. is a combination guard who could put points on the board with his outside shot and scoring and make plays for his teammates.

"What was impressive at USC was he was able to fit in. He did his best to try to fit in to his team and the wishes of his coach [Tim Floyd].

"Due to the composition of his team, he didn't always have the ball in his hands. He played off picks, which he didn't do that much of in the past. He also played for a great defensive coach in Tim Floyd, who demanded defense from his players.

"He is physically mature for a player entering the NBA, is a guard who can play both positions, and I expect him to go in the top eight."

Before the ESPN story broke, Mayo told the Globe: "I understand this is a business. [NBA teams] can lean any way. But at the end of the day, I know for sure that I won't be outworked. I'm going to conduct myself as a professional wherever I end up. I want to learn. I want to get better."

Mayo, whose father has been in jail for various offenses, may be the latest unprotected kid taken advantage of by vultures hoping to make money off future stars. He wouldn't be the last, and there are countless similar stories in the NBA that haven't been told.

"It's all a process of learning and learning from whatever mistakes you have made," Mayo said. "That's what makes you a better person."

Hoping for a sniff of Rose

Ten years ago, then-Celtics general manager Chris Wallace made his colleagues literally turn up their noses as he arrived to the NBA draft lottery in Secaucus, N.J.: There was a stench coming from one of Red Auerbach's used good-luck cigars inside his coat pocket.

This time around, as the Grizzlies GM, Wallace will probably get odder looks when he shows up with a good-luck teddy bear.

The Grizzlies have a 13.8 percent chance, the fourth-best odds, to land the top pick in Tuesday's lottery. Memphis finished with a 22-60 record, and depending on the lottery results, it will have anywhere from the top pick to the seventh selection. With his eyes on Memphis guard Derrick Rose and Kansas State forward Michael Beasley, Wallace is hoping to be in the top two.

"There is no one else in the running," said Wallace. "It's a two-horse race."

Wallace will arrive to the proceedings with a Build-A-Bear teddy bear dressed as a Grizzlies player, made and autographed by guard Mike Conley. While star guard Rudy Gay will represent the Grizzlies on the stage for the televised portion of the lottery, Wallace will represent the franchise behind the scenes when the drawing actually takes place, about 45 minutes earlier. He will have teddy bear in hand.

If the Grizzlies get one of the top two picks, said Wallace, "That bear will be dancing around."

Wallace sat on the draft lottery stage representing the Celtics in 1998, when Boston had the 10th-best odds and ended up with the 10th selection. The 10th pick was overlooked Kansas forward Paul Pierce.

"I had a partially smoked cigar from Red Auerbach with me," Wallace said. "He puffed it, stubbed it out, put it in a baggie, and sent it, FedEx, to me. I put it in the jacket pocket. I walked on stage with it and they smelled me coming.

"We were better off with 10th than No. 1 [Michael Olowokandi] that year."

The Grizzlies have four talented young point guards in Conley, Javaris Crittenton, Kyle Lowry, and Juan Carlos Navarro. Even so, Grizzlies fans will go crazy if they can land Rose, who may be as popular as Elvis after starring for the Tigers when they advanced to the NCAA title game this year.

Expect Wallace and the Grizzlies to do their due diligence and work out both Rose and Beasley if they get the top pick. But while Wallace won't say it, the pressure to select the local star who can fill the seats would be immense.

"There would be strong local sentiment to take him," Wallace said. "He is a marquee player on a team beloved in this city.

"We've got to take the guy that works best for us. What really sells the most tickets in the NBA, and what you're seeing now in Boston, is winning.

"But he is a very attractive player, no question about that. That would be an interesting dilemma to choose between him and Beasley.

"Beasley had unbelievable numbers. He led the nation in rebounding, shot college threes, goes to the basket strong. He had one of the all-time-best freshman years in college basketball."

If the Grizzlies have a pick lower than second, expect them to try to work out a long list of players, including Stanford center Brook Lopez, USC guard O.J. Mayo, Arizona guard Jerryd Bayless, UCLA forward Kevin Love, Kansas forward Darrell Arthur, Texas A&M center DeAndre Jordan, Syracuse forward Donte Green, Indiana guard Eric Gordon, and Italian forward Danilo Gallinari.

Even if they wind up with the seventh pick, said Wallace, "I do feel there will be a good player. We will look at trading possibilities, too. But odds are we will make the pick. We'll help our team if we are at 1 or 7. But there is more cachet if you're at 1 or 2."

Spurs have some road work to do

Playing in deciding playoff games is nothing new for the reigning NBA champion Spurs. What will be new for this decade's NBA power is playing in a deciding game on the road.

The Spurs won an NBA title in 2005 by winning a Game 7 against the Pistons. San Antonio was eliminated in the Western Conference semifinals in Game 7 against Dallas in 2006. And back when the first round was a five-game series, the Spurs won a deciding Game 5 against the Sonics in 2002.

All those deciding games were played in San Antonio. However, the last time the Spurs played a Game 7 on the road was in 1990, when they lost, 108-105, in overtime to the Blazers in the West semifinals.

Tomorrow night, the Spurs will play a Game 7 against the Hornets in New Orleans. San Antonio has lost all three games in New Orleans during this series.

While the Spurs have experienced playoff performers in Tim Duncan, Robert Horry, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Bruce Bowen, and Michael Finley on their roster, Game 7 in The Big Easy will be far from easy. A screaming, sold-out, yellow-clad crowd at the New Orleans Arena should give the Hornets some energy.

"Obviously, we'd like for it to be [in San Antonio]," said Duncan, "but they earned that right, so we're going to go in there and put together a better performance than we have.

"We'll have better focus. We'll understand what's put us in holes in their gym, and hopefully we can do a good job of taking the crowd out of it a littler bit and not allow them to feed off of that."

Said Parker, "The key is just to play for 48 minutes, and if we can keep it close, it will help us win."

Etc.

Point well-taken
Several NBA executives said Memphis guard Derrick Rose has a strong edge over Kansas State forward Michael Beasley to be the top pick in this year's draft. "If you get a franchise point guard, you can have him for a while," said an Eastern Conference executive. "Rose will probably get the nod even as good as Beasley is. It's easier to find Beasley than Derrick Rose." Said a general manager: "It's too hard to get a point guard. If you could imagine, how good would Atlanta be with [Deron] Williams or [Chris] Paul?"

Delay of game
A high-ranking NBA source said that the Bulls first wanted to hire ex-Celtic Rick Carlisle for their coaching opening before he opted to go to the Mavericks. Next, the Bulls really wanted to hire Mike D'Antoni before he opted to go to New York. So why can't the Bulls seal the deal? The source said that Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf and executive vice president John Paxson lost out on Carlisle and D'Antoni because they're taking too much time on extensive background checks. Stay tuned if the Suns steal a coach out of the slow Bulls' grasps, too.

King's men
An NBA source said new Bobcats coach Larry Brown is pushing ex-Sixers GM Billy King for the Hawks' GM opening. If King gets it, the job of Hawks coach Mike Woodson would be safe since he is a Brown disciple. Other potential candidates include Celtics assistant GM Dave Wohl, Washington vice president of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard, Spurs assistant GM Dennis Lindsey, and Cavs assistant GM Chris Grant. ESPN.com has also mentioned Blazers scout John Gabriel, a former Magic GM. New Pistons assistant GM Scott Perry won't be in the mix.

Sunny days ahead?
Keep an eye on Spurs lead assistant Mike Budenholzer as a candidate for the Suns' head coaching job. He coached Suns GM Steve Kerr in San Antonio.

Big men on campus
Blazers center Greg Oden and Memphis guard Mike Conley, both ex-Ohio State stars, are sharing an apartment near the college during summer school. A publicist says Oden is "about 70 percent" recovered after having right knee surgery that caused him to miss the season.

Chances are...
A league source said University of Massachusetts swingman Gary Forbes is expected to be invited to the NBA predraft camp in Orlando from May 27-30. The source said University of Rhode Island forward Will Daniels has a "50-50" chance while Boston College center Tyrelle Blair is "a long shot."

Marc J. Spears can be reached at mspears@globe.com