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Party’s Over at USC

March 23rd, 2008 · No Comments · Basketball, USC

Hope USC fans enjoyed that one season. O.J. and the lads. Because they’re all about to bolt and Tim Floyd will be starting over. Again.

O.J. Mayo is a sure thing to turn pro. Ignore any ambivalent statements he might have made about coming back. Not gonna happen.

The Trojans would be OK if Mayo, the freshman, were the only guy about to bolt. But he’s only the most prominent of what I believe will be three guys skipping out early. Taj Gibson and Davon Jefferson — USC’s two competent big men — are going to go, too, in my opinion.

It’s a function of the sort of guys Floyd recruits, who are even less “student athlete” than usual. It’s all about getting ready for The League, and the college season is just something to help with that.

It’s not as if UCLA guys are shy about doing less than four years of college, but at least they consider it. Arron Afflalo made it through three years before going to the NBA, as did Darren Collison.

USC guys, under Floyd, won’t wait another minute, even if their draft prospects are a little shaky.

Gibson is a borderline first-rounder, and Jefferson probably is a second-rounder, but that will be enough for both of them to go. Especially the later, who never has been a student of any significant standing.

Losing all three will be a big setback for this USC team. Even with Demar DeRozan coming in, the Trojans are going to have to scramble to find five competent players to run out there. Daniel Hackett, Dwight Lewis, DeRozan, maybe Angelo Johnson, this year’s sixth man. And after that … well, let’s just say Li’l Romeo (Miller) isn’t going to play serious minutes.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed that season. A victory over UCLA, the notion that the Trojans could make an NCAA run (which ended in the first round) … and well, that’s it. It’s over, and I wonder if Mayo will even bother turning up at class Monday.

The good news? It’s almost time for spring football. And whom to you like? Mark Sanchez of Mitch Mustain?

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