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LeBron Raymone James, born December 30, 1984 in Akron, Ohio), commonly nicknamed King James or The Chosen One, is an American All-Star NBA basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers.Beginning in his junior year of high school, James was highly promoted by the national media in the United States as a future NBA star. He was selected with the first overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, directly out of high school at the age of 18. In just three years, James has finished second in Most Valuable Player voting and has led the Cavaliers to the second round of the NBA Playoffs, as he is now widely considered as one of the most gifted and versatile players as well as serving as one of the more prominent figures in the league.Early lifeLeBron James was born an only child in a low-income area of Akron, Ohio to the unwed Gloria James on December 30, 1984. His mother was only 16 at the time and six months shy of graduating from high school. Due to his family's humble circumstances, James, being raised solely by his mother and her associates, led a transitory lifestyle, moving frequently from one home to another. Things began to look up for him when his mother began seeing a man by the name of Eddie Jackson. James was young enough at the time to have him serve as a father figure; he did not have any contact with his biological father. Jackson would often be seen supporting James later on at his high school basketball games. Starting as early as his junior year in high school, James had made it clear he was planning to pursue an NBA career following his graduation.NBA career2003-04 season
In what was one of the most anticipated NBA drafts in recent memory, James was the first overall pick of the 2003 NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers He is number 23.Because of immense public interest in LeBron, he became an instant celebrity. Even before James played a single NBA game, he was awarded an unprecedented $90 million shoe contract by Nike.
LeBron James on the shootout practice with US national team before the game vs. Serbia and Montenegro in Belgrade, August 6, 2004.Despite the surmounting hype which surrounded him, James did not disappoint, netting 25 points, nine assists, six rebounds, and four steals on 12-of-20 shooting in his first regular season NBA game against the Sacramento Kings. He went on to win Rookie of the Year honors. He finished his rookie season with 20.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 5.9 assists per game, joining Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan as the only three players to average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists per game in a rookie season. The Cavaliers improved by 18 wins in his first season, but failed to make the playoffs.2004-05 season
In the offseason, James played for Team USA in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece where he and his teammates won the bronze medal in men's basketball, the first time an American Olympic team using NBA players (called the Dream Teams) failed to win the gold medal. Due to coach Larry Brown's preference for experienced players, James' minutes on the court were limited.In the 2004-2005 season, James became the youngest player to register a triple-double (double digits in three statistical categories such as points, assist, rebounds) and the youngest player to score 50 points in one game (56 points in a loss to the Toronto Raptors), making his first All-Star team in the process. James joined a select group of players to average over 25 points, 7 assists and 7 rebounds in a season. Again, the Cavaliers failed to reach the playoffs (this time by only one game), finishing two games over the .500 mark.2005-06 season
The Cavaliers made several off-season moves in the summer of 2005, adding Larry Hughes (from the Washington Wizards), Damon Jones (from the Miami Heat) and Donyell Marshall (from the Toronto Raptors). The Cavs' front office underwent substantial management changes at this time as well. Long-time owner Gordon Gund sold the franchise to Dan Gilbert, who subsequently replaced General Manager Jim Paxson with former Cavs player Danny Ferry, and brought in Mike Brown as the new head coach.At the 2006 NBA All-Star Game, James led the Eastern Conference team to victory with a 29-point, six-rebound performance. He was awarded the game's MVP, becoming the youngest player to do so.James finished the season with 31.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game, joining Oscar Robertson, Jerry West and Michael Jordan as the only players in NBA history to average at least 30 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists in a single season. James also became the youngest player in NBA history to average at least 30 points per game in a season.MVP candidacy
Following the 2005-2006 regular season, James was one of the top candidates for the NBA Most Valuable Player Award. He was third in the league in scoring, and second in the league in efficiency rating behind Kevin Garnett. [1] James finished second to Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns in MVP voting.James was awarded co-MVP honors with Nash by The Sporting News, an award given by that publication based on voting of the thirty General Managers in the league.2005-06 Playoffs
On March 29, 2006, the Cavaliers clinched a playoff spot for the first time since 1998. In just three years, James had transformed the Cavaliers from a lottery team (17-65 the season before he arrived) into a playoff contender, ending the 2005-2006 season with a 50-32 record, 4th in the Eastern Conference.On April 22 James made his playoff debut against the Washington Wizards and recorded a triple-double, with 32 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds in the Game 1 victory. He became the third player in NBA history to register a triple-double in his playoff debut, joining Johnny McCarthy (1960) and Magic Johnson (1980). On April 28 in Game 3, he became the first player to score over 40 points in his first playoff road game, with 41 in a win over the Wizards. The Cavaliers won the series 4 games to 2, and James tallied the third highest scoring average for a player's first playoff series (35.7 ppg), behind Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.James led the Cavaliers to a 3-2 series lead over the defending Eastern Conference champion and divisional rival Detroit Pistons. The Pistons, however, eliminated the Cavs by winning the final two games.
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