No. 3 Pick by Minnesota . . . Hold the Mayo, Not So Fast
Jon Krawczynski, Associated Press Reporting
MINNEAPOLIS (AP)—The Minnesota Timberwolves have traded No. 3 pick O.J. Mayo to the Memphis Grizzlies for Kevin Love in an eight-player, late-night blockbuster long after the NBA draft concluded.
A person with knowledge of the deal confirmed it to The Associated Press, speaking on the condition on anonymity because the trade had yet to be officially announced.
The Timberwolves also received shooter Mike Miller and frontcourt retreads Brian Cardinal (a Purdue graduate) and Jason Collins from Memphis in exchange for the draft rights to Mayo, forward Antoine Walker and guards Marko Jaric and Greg Buckner.
The deal allows the Timberwolves to dump Walker, who was unhappy riding the bench on a young team, and Jaric’s contract, which has three years and more than $21 million remaining.
Miller also fills a huge hole on the team as a perimeter shooter and gives them Love, a player who can play down low next to Al Jefferson on a formidable young front line.
The Grizzlies, in turn, get a dynamic guard in Mayo who was widely rated the third-best player in the draft behind Memphis guard Derrick Rose and Kansas State forward Michael Beasley, who went first and second, respectively.
Timberwolves fans will likely be reminded of another lottery-swapping move two years ago, when Minnesota selected Brandon Roy, then traded him to Portland for Randy Foye and cash.
Roy went on to become rookie of the year in 2006-07 and an All-Star last season, while Foye has struggled with injuries while showing promise as a floor leader and playmaking perimeter threat.
With Foye and Rashad McCants—two smallish scoring guards—already on the roster, the Wolves started their evening by drafting the 6-foot-5 Mayo out of USC with the third pick.
Memphis took Love, a fundamentally sound 6-foot-10 power forward from UCLA, with the fifth overall pick.
Despite the apparent similarities between Mayo, Foye and Rashad McCants, assistant GM Fred Hoiberg told hundreds of fans gathered at Target Center for a draft party that he thought Mayo would fit in just fine with the guard-heavy Timberwolves.
“We thought there was a realistic chance Miami would take him at No. 2,” Hoiberg said of the Heat, who chose Kansas State forward Michael Beasley. “We think that he’ll come in and be able to help us out right away.”
Hoiberg raved about Mayo’s outside shooting and competitive spirit, calling him “a complete player, a complete person” and someone who can “come in and be able to help us out right away.”
It turns out that Mayo helped them for about four hours.
McHale and the Wolves brass sat sequestered in the team’s draft room for more than two hours after the draft concluded, hammering out the particulars of the deal.
Collins only has one year left on his contract, making him a hot commodity on the NBA trade market. Cardinal has two years left, while Miller is the outside shooter the team has been craving for years.
Miller averaged 16.7 points and 6.7 rebounds a game and, most attractive the Wolves, shot 43 percent on 3-pointers last season.
Love set UCLA freshman records for scoring and rebounding on his way to being named conference player of the year in his only season with the Bruins. The Timberwolves were impressed by his passing, shooting range and knack for coming up with rebounds in traffic.
In Walker and Buckner, the Grizzlies get two veterans whose best days are long behind them and a guard/forward in Jaric that never fulfilled the promise McHale had for him when he traded Sam Cassell and a first-round draft choice for Jaric in 2005.
Memphis also traded the rights to Syracuse forward Donte Greene, the No. 28 pick, in exchange for the rights to Darrell Arthur, who was picked 27th and traded three times. New Orleans dealt his rights to Portland, which then traded him to Houston. The Rockets then traded his rights to Memphis early Friday morning.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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