May 7, 2012; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers point guard Chris Paul (3) is defended by Memphis Grizzlies power forward Zach Randolph (50) and shooting guard O.J. Mayo (32) during the second half of game four of the Western Conference quarterfinals of the 2012 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Former NBA Top-Three Pick Sends Message to Jimmy Butler for First Post in Four Years

Originally posted on Memphis Grizzlies on SI
By Grant Mona | Last updated Aug 12, 2025 1:30 PM ET

The career of a college basketball phenom can go one of three ways: you become the superstar you were in college, you become a solid role player on contending teams, or you are out of the league after multiple opportunities.

Such is life, and such is the story of former Grizzlies guard O.J. Mayo.

Mayo played one season of college basketball at the University of Southern California and was an absolute star in the Los Angeles area. He averaged 20.7 points per game on 44.2 percent shooting and 40.9 percent from three-point range in his lone year in college.

Mayo earned First-team All-Pac-10 honors, was selected to the Pac-10 All-Freshman team, and earned an All-Pac-10 tournament team honor in 2008. USC later vacated all of its wins from the 2007-2008 season, declaring Mayo ineligible for receiving improper benefits.

Mayo's rollercoaster of an NBA career

Mayo was such an enticing prospect coming out of USC that he was drafted third overall in the 2008 NBA Draft, and traded to the Memphis Grizzlies on draft night.

He played eight seasons in the NBA with the Grizzlies , Dallas Mavericks, and Milwaukee Bucks, and averaged 13.8 points per game on 42.9 percent from the field and a respectable 37.3 percent from beyond the arc in his 547 career games.

But his tenure in the league was marked by multiple off-the-court incidents, including a 10-game suspension in 2011 for a positive test of a steroid. Mayo claimed that it was an over-the-counter supplement that he was unaware was banned by the NBA.

The most significant incident came in July of 2016, when he was "dismissed and disqualified" from the NBA for violating the league's anti-drug policy. Mayo acknowledged smoking marijuana and using a prescription pain medicine, and was disqualified for two years, and never returned to the NBA.

What is Mayo up to now?

Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

The former NBA veteran played two years in the Chinese Basketball Association and had a successful career. Still, his last season playing professional basketball was the 2021-2022 season, during which he averaged only 5.8 points per game for UNICS Kazan in the Euroleague.

Mayo made his first post on Instagram since 2021, shouting out Jimmy Butler after he attended his event in China.