Mayo appears ready to make his mark in the NBA.

And the Gizzlies, who acquired the 6-foot-5 guard in an eight-player deal after Minnesota selected him No. 3 overall in June's NBA draft, couldn't be happier.

"I'm very comfortable, and I'm very excited to get started with this season. Draft night was probably my most difficult night," Mayo said. "Get announced by one team, then traded to another team in the same night after that ... I'm very, very excited to start this season."

But Mayo's arrival in Memphis came with almost as much drama as his recruitment to college and his early departure from Southern California for the NBA. He thought he was headed to Minnesota until he saw news of the eight-player on television late draft night.

"I just wanted to get drafted, and I wanted to be a part of the NBA," said Mayo, who turns 21 in November.

What made the trade even tougher on Mayo was there was no phone call first with the news.

"That moment was the most difficult moment because in less than 24 hours of my dream come true, you understand it's a business that fast. I just had to deal with it and keep going," Mayo said.

Mayo knew he would be drafted by a lottery team even with the luck of the NBA pingpong balls. He had scouted rosters and teams, and the change in destination was helped by his friendship with Mike Conley - the Grizzlies' first-round draft pick a year ago.

The Grizzlies are a team that went 22-60 last season and finished last in the Western Conference's Southwest Division, matching those same Minnesota Timberwolves for the NBA's third-worst record.

Memphis spent the past few months shedding salaries and rebuilding with youth, a franchise with nine players 23 or younger. The Grizzlies swapped Kevin Love, the fourth pick overall, and 3-point shooter Mike Miller to Minnesota for Mayo in a deal that also brought them veterans Greg Buckner, Marko Jaric and Antoine Walker.

Buckner has gotten some minutes in the preseason, but Jaric has been limited by a broken nose suffered near the beginning of training camp. Iavaroni has called Walker overweight and said he's not sure what the veteran can bring to Memphis. Walker did not come off the bench in the final six exhibitions.

Youth is the focus of this team.

Mayo will be starting with Rudy Gay, last year's leading scorer who averaged 20.1 points per game and is going into his third NBA season; and Conley, who had an injury-plagued rookie season. The 7-foot Marc Gasol, whose rights were acquired in last season's trade sending his brother Pau to the Los Angeles Lakers, will start in the middle with 7-footer Darko Milicic trying to tap his potential going into his seventh year.

The Grizzlies also have rookies Darrell Arthur, the 27th pick overall out of national champion Kansas, with 7-foot-2 Hamed Haddadi of Iran who brings a defensive presence even as he needs work on his offensive skills.

Orlando guard Mickael Pietrus guarded Mayo in the Magic's 101-90 preseason win as the rookie missed his first six shots. But he thinks Mayo will be a great player for the Grizzlies. Pietrus sees Mayo as a rookie of the year candidate.

He sat with Mayo two years ago in a locker room at a NIKE-sponsored game in Memphis.

"He was saying his goal was to make it to the NBA. Today, you see what he can do on the floor. To me to see that, have his dream come true, be a third pick, I'm very happy for him," Pietrus said.

Miami coach Erik Spoelstra, who saw Mayo during pre-draft workouts and again during the Heat's 102-085 preseason victory, was impressed.

"He can not only create for himself, but he also can get into the paint and make plays for his teammates," Spoelstra said. "His shooting ability was a little bit streaky in the preseason, but you can tell he's going to be a very good shooter."

And with the Grizzlies, Mayo won't be expected to carry the team, even with all the youth around him. That job belongs to Gay and Conley. But Iavaroni likes what he sees in his top rookie.

"He has displayed the character and quality you need in a great player and potentially a great leader," Iavaroni said.

"He's willing to work hard, he's willing to be coachable, he's willing to fight through adversity, he's willing to fight through inconsistency whether he's getting 28 points one night or eight the next. He's shown a real resilience that's going to be real important to him, especially at this point of his career."

-----