Dallas Mavericks: Top 5 greatest one-season wonders in team history
By Steve Zavala
3. O. J. Mayo — 2012–2013 season
Following their 2011 championship run, the Mavs would go on a gradual decline over the years. They still would go on to make several playoff appearances but never re-emerged as a serious title contender. Still, the front office thought otherwise and did their best to retool the team year after year.
The 2012–2013 Mavericks was one example of this. They added veterans like Elton Brand and Chris Kaman, but they didn’t amount to much aside from being a scoring option off the bench. However, O. J. Mayo turned out to be the one signing who churned out a notable season.
After spending four seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies, the Mavs signed Mayo in free agency. Many looked at him as simply a sixth man scoring option, but he emerged to have a greater role than that.
He wound up starting in all 82 games over the season and averaged 15.3 points per game, which exceeded initial expectations. Mayo found ways to just fill out the stat sheet; he recorded 22 games with at least 20 points scored and 14 games with at least seven assists.
His 40-point performance against the Houston Rockets is what most remember from his one-year tenure in Dallas. He established a groove early on and went off for the season-high performance.
Mayo elected to decline his player option and became a free agent in the offseason, where he signed with the Milwaukee Bucks.