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Report: Mayo got cash, benefits from promoter
Updated: May 11, 2008, 6:21 PM EST
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LOS ANGELES (AP) - A former associate of USC freshman guard O.J. Mayo claims the basketball star received thousands of dollars in cash and other gifts from an event promoter over the past four years that would violate NCAA rules, ESPN reported Sunday.

Photos Louis Johnson told ESPN's "Outside the Lines," that Rodney Guillory, a Los Angeles-based event promoter, gave Mayo about $30,000 and other benefits while he attended high school and his sole season at USC. Mayo has decided to forgo his sophomore year and enter the NBA draft.

Guillory received monthly payments from a Northern California sports agency Bill Duffy Associates, the network reported. A phone message left for the agency was not immediately returned Sunday.

Johnson said the agency provided Guillory with about $200,000 before Mayo arrived at USC. Guillory used most of the money to support his own lifestyle but also gave a portion of it to Mayo, Johnson told ESPN. Mayo then entered into a verbal agreement that allowed the agency to represent him when he turned pro, Johnson added.

Giving college athletes money or other gifts violates NCAA policy.

"I will not allow these allegations to become a distraction to me and my family," Mayo said in a statement to ESPN. "I have not engaged in any wrongdoing."

Mayo got into some minor trouble with the NCAA earlier this year after he accepted free tickets from Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony to an NBA game. Mayo didn't miss any games but had to contribute $460 - the total value of the two tickets - to a charitable organization.

USC said in a statement that NCAA and Pac-10 officials have looked into Mayo's status "before and during his enrollment at USC, and did not identify any amateurism violations."

Johnson said he doesn't believe USC officials knew Guillory provided cash and other benefits to Mayo. However, he claims some USC coaches had regular contact with Guillory.

Johnson, who claims he didn't get paid, also gave ESPN receipts and invoices for many of the purchases.

Read about this earlier today. I don't know how much it'd affect him now that he's going Pro... could hurt the USC basketball program a bit htough.

*cough* Reggie Bush *cough*

Sad to say, but I hope no one is surprised by this............I honestly feel top recruits at most schools get cash, cars, whatever. And I'm not saying it's right, or ok by any stretch.....

Even when Mayo played ball at North College Hill in Cincy I knew he was taken gifts and such. If I had to pick any person in college most likely to recieve gifts and cash it would have been Mayo. His attitude the entire time was I belong in the pros, high school and college are just stepping stones

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could hurt the USC basketball program a bit htough.

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It could, but I'm not sure it should. USC wasn't paying him.. USC boosters weren't paying him... The money he was getting had NOTHING to do with USC. He could have gone to Cincinnati he would have been paid, he could have gone to Texas and he would have been paid, he could have gone to OSU and he would have been paid. He was being paid by a runner for a management company who just wanted to hook him for when he went pro. How much detecitve work is a university or program supposed to do to make sure the players aren't getting money from some other source totally unrelated to the university? Should they look at the parents tax documents? Should they demand receipts and invoices for purchases like shoes, Xboxs, ipods, etc? As I understand it this guy got his hooks into Mayo when he was about 15 years old. It's sad that agents will stoop this low, but I think you can only blame Mayo a little bit, he's a freakin' kid and you can't really blame the university at all... 99% of the blame on this one goes to the scumbag management company...

Another college athlete gets money and benefits.... yawn... did I miss something important. yawn...

While i was the game on Monday nite vs the Celtics.....guess who was sitting courtside on the floor.....that's right O.J.Mayo.....crazy!