The King's Court is in Cleveland

He is better known as "King" James. Actuclly, he is a 22-year old NBA Pheonom who in his four years in the league has scorched it and left other teams in shambles.

So who is this King that everyone is talking about?

Come On! You know which one.

LeBron Raymone James was born on December 30, 1984 in Akron, Ohio. He was the only child of Gloria James, a teenage mom who was six months away from graduating high school. James moved constantly within the Akron area, but things began to improve when a young man named Eddie Jackson came into his mother's life. Jackson became a father figure to young Lebron, seeing as though he never knew his real father all too well. Jackson taught him the game of basketball at a young age, up until James became a high school phoenom.

James matriculated in Akron at St. Vincent- St. Mary High School, a catholic private school. He immediately made headway in his freshman year as one of the top basketball players in the school. His freshman year team was captained by his best friend and current agent, Maverick Carter. The two tore into the state of Ohio like a dog tears through a favorite toy, as they won the 2000 Ohio Division III state title and posted an undefeated 27-0 mark under coach Dru James.

While at SVSM, he was a star athlete on the football team, yet he had to give that up due to injury problems and concerns, even after he was an All-State Wide Reciever for the football team in the 2000 season. This led him to want to concentrate solely on defending the state title in 2001. By this time his friend Maverick had graduated, and he was left as what seemed to be the only man SVSM had. No biggie. James was a state leader with 27.8 ppg, and the Fighting Irish won another state title, while at the same time LeBron earned Mr. Basketball honors and USA Today All-Star honors.

James only got better and better. In 2001-02, his junior year, he nearly had 30 points a game, won another Mr. Basketball, and ultimately made "King" James a household name in Ohio basketball homes. SLAM Magazine even had a piece on him, his first national exposure. He even began to think about the NBA. He even tried to challenge the NBA's rules of eligibility at the time, which at that time there was only the requirement of a high school diploma. While unsuccessful in his attempt to challenge the rules, it led to a growing amount of attention as he neared the last game of his junior year, another trip to the state finals. Cincinnati's Roger Bacon stood in his way, and unfortunately it was not to be in 2002. Roger Bacon matched him shot for shot in their upset win over James and SVSM.

In his senior year, he was declared the best player in the history of high school basketball. ESPN magazines, visits to games by Shaquille O'Neal, and national TV exposure in some occasions did not phase LeBron entering his senior season. However, there was a tiny glitch in the plans.

His mother was allowed to give her son a Hummer H2, worth $80,000, for her son's 18th birthday, by using her son's future earning power as collateral for a bank loan. However, Ohio High School Athletic Association rules stated that no gift for athletic performance can be priced at $100 or less. Later, James accepted $850 worth of throwback basketball jerseys as a swap for a photo-op for a urban clothing store. The OHSAA declared him ineligible, but reduced the ban to two games by order of the court system.

Despite this, James returned to the court for their third state title. He also won Mr. Basketball one last time, and only North College Hill's OJ Mayo has won back to back Mr. Basketball's since then. OJ also earned MVP honors at the three biggest all star games, the McDonalds All-American Game, the EA Roundball Classic, and the Jordan Capital Classic. Since he played in more than two all-star games, James lost his NCAA eligibility. But, it was'nt like he was going to be playing in college. James hired an agent and declared himself eligible for the NBA Draft in April of 2003.

A few weeks later, the NBA Draft Lottery became taglined as "The LeBron James Sweepstakes". They normally go through a routine where NBA teams are accused of deliberately losing games to go higher up in the draft, since the NBA only draws from the teams that did not qualify for the playoffs. The Cavaliers, with the worst record in the 2002-03 season, had the best chance to grab him with the #1 pick. When the Cavaliers logo was pulled first , Cleveland went stark mad over LeBron-mania. In June, Cleveland officially made LeBron James the #1 pick, and the newest member of the Cavalier family. Paul Silas had just been named Cavaliers coach, making him his first NBA coach. Working together, the Cavaliers only managed to eke out a 2003-04 total of 35 wins, missing the playoffs by a wide margin. But it earned LeBron, who had 20.9 points a game, the Rookie of the Year award. And, even before the season began, James was $90 million richer thanks to a Nike shoe contract. His largest accomplishment was putting on one of the best "Rookie game" outputs in tandem with fellow 2003 pick, Denver's Carmelo Anthony. His 2nd year in the league was a better one. 42 wins, 27.7 points a game, and even with a new coach in Brendan Malone, he found himself in the All-Star game for the first time, as well as his second stint on the all-NBA team.

In season three, everything began clicking. Mike Brown was the Cavaliers coach, and he rode James to his best efforts in his three years in the league. James, under Brown, 31.4 points a game, scored 35 points in nine straight games, and led the Cavs to a playoff spot with 50 wins. The post season in 2006 began with a series against Washington, which the Cavs won in six games, but their season ended with a seven game heart breaker against Detroit. The season had its upsides, especially coming in All-Star Weekend in Houston, where LeBron won All-Star Game MVP honors when he scored 29 points in the All-Star Game.

The Cavs continued to improve their NBA ranking in 2006-07, when they once again won 50 games and claimed seed #2 in the East. In the season.

LeBron James has a boy, LeBron Jr., with his high school sweetheart, and also has another boy on the way in June. Let's see if LeBron, Jr. can pick up his daddy's effort soon. Could there be a 2nd generation phenom. Only time will tell...