O.J. Mayo in Kenya

Once upon a time, O.J. Mayo was a top recruit, a lottery pick and one of the most promising shooting guards in the NBA. Then his production tailed off until he averaged just 7.8 points during the 2015-16 season with the Bucks, and that offseason the NBA handed him a two-year suspension for failing a drug test.

Mayo recently told Sports Illustrated’s Ben Golliver he hit “rock bottom” during the first year of his suspension. As he attempts to make a NBA comeback, a key moment during a trip to Kenya provided greater perspective. He bought three cows for each family in the Massai Mara village and realized his situation isn’t so bad after all:

He visited Dubai, the Maldives, Uganda, and South Africa, but the highlight was a January visit to the Maasai Mara village in Kenya, which he documented on Instagram. There, he said he bought three cows—at $300 apiece—for each family in the village.

“I’ve been to Africa before,” he said. “It brings you to a still. This was about clearing my mind. When you’re on an NBA schedule, you’re away from home a lot. To be a man in Kenya, you have to care for your family away from home. I thought that was important. They’re gone for weeks breeding cattle so that the cycle of life can continue. It made me realize I’m blessed. At the time, I was dark. I was in a rough spot. I didn’t really see the light. The trip made me realize that I’m in a great situation and I’ve got to appreciate it. I could easily be in jail or dead.”

This summer, Mayo started working out in Los Angeles with development coach Chris Johnson and strength and fitness trainer Travelle Gaines, who estimate the former USC star has already lost more than 25 pounds.

I'm not black I'm O.J ….??? my bro back working hard in the gym!! Miss the USC days #Blessed #MyBrother #USC

A post shared by Taj Gibson (@tajgibson22) on

Mayo said he is completely sober now and hasn’t visited a club in at least three months, and that’s already a sign that Mayo has changed. He and some Bucks teammates once partied all night at a strip club the night before a game. Mayo has committed to a vegan diet as part of a healthier lifestyle.

Mayo won’t be eligible for reinstatement to the NBA for until next July. But he has received FIBA clearance and may try playing overseas in China, Spain or Israel this season. If he gains reinstatement next year, he wants to return to the Bucks and make up for being, in his words, an overpaid, subpar player:

“I want to go back to what I left [in Milwaukee],” Mayo said, when asked for his dream destination. “I was real close with Jason Kidd. That was the best relationship I had with a coach besides [Dwaine Barnes]. I had great relationships with Giannis [Antetokounmpo] and Khris Middleton. I was comfortable there. I felt like I let them down, cheated them for two years. They paid me $8 million to be, in my eyes, a subpar player. They invested millions of dollars for me to be on top of my s—, and when you’re not on top of your s—, it shows. I’ll be 30 next summer. If they just give me the chance, I can make it up. I owe them.”

If you don’t find Mayo’s comeback attempt inspiring, this quote from the Sports Illustrated story about why Mayo wanted more structure in his life should resonate:

“I was getting tired of watching SportsCenter and Stephen A. Smith,” Mayo said.

So are we, my friend. So are we.

[Sports Illustrated | Photo: Instagram]

About Jesse Kramer

Jesse is a writer and editor for The Comeback. He has also worked for SI.com and runs The Catch and Shoot, a college basketball website based in Chicago. He is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Follow Jesse on Twitter @Jesse_Kramer.