Give the kid a break, he's a junior in high school for ------ sake.

["Ravi Singh" <kelticsfan@attbi.com>]

http://espn.go.com/sportsbusiness/s/2002/0227/1341476.html

Collectors already cashing in on hoop star

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By Darren Rovell
ESPN.com


With a cover shot in Sports Illustrated and a feature on ESPN's
SportsCenter, high school junior LeBron James is getting the star
treatment. Unfortunately for the hoop sensation from Akron, Ohio, that
treatment extends to the collectibles market, as well.

In the wake of his appearance on the Feb. 18 cover of Sports
Illustrated, demand for collectibles related to "the next Michael
Jordan" has skyrocketed. The frenzy erupted so quickly that after only a
couple days the 17-year-old James announced he would limit his autograph
signing because he had become aware that most of the seekers were
collectibles dealers. As a result, he said he would sign only for people
he knew, and he wouldn't sign any Sports Illustrated covers.

As of Wednesday afternoon, a search for "LeBron James" on eBay produced
more than 80 items, including more than 40 copies of the Sports
Illustrated issue, some of which are autographed.

"I have had grown men come up to me and say they are for their kids ...
and then I see that (on eBay)," James told the Akron Beacon-Journal last
Thursday.

Autograph dealer Mike Davis, who has sold many James items on eBay in
the last couple weeks (including signed magazine covers for more than
$250), said he and several others who have been selling autographed
James items have received threatening e-mails urging them not to profit
off the high school phenom.

"If it wasn't for sports fans like myself and people paying money for
his items, nobody would care about him," Davis said.

 " He has an attitude like he is Jordan already. If my encounter with
him had been pleasant, it would have been a treasured item for me.
However, he was a punk, so now I could care less if I still own it. "
  - Peter Hampson, autograph collector

Others who have obtained James' autograph in recent days say they
quickly went from being collectors to dealers after meeting the player
face-to-face.

"He has an attitude like he is Jordan already," said Peter Hampson, who
sold an autographed Sports Illustrated for $203.51 on Saturday. "If my
encounter with him had been pleasant, it would have been a treasured
item for me. However, he was a punk, so now I could care less if I still
own it."

Since the magazine came out, autograph requests mailed to St.
Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, including copies of the magazine,
have gone from a couple a day to at least 20, said Pola Ochsenhirt,
secretary to the athletic director. Ochsenhirt said she has been sending
the magazines back unsigned in the self-addressed stamped envelopes the
collectors provide with a letter stating that the high school does not
help "solicit, collect, distribute or sell autographs of any student
athlete" and that the school will "not provide any player's autographs
or deliver mail requesting autographs."

Some collectibles dealers, it seems, have taken to creating James
memorabilia from scratch. Limited edition James trading cards also have
appeared on eBay, drawing the highest bids to date of all the James
paraphernalia. A card made by BGS Cards (numbered 1-100) sold for $430
last week, and another was listed at $510 on Wednesday afternoon. A card
made by Premier Collectibles sold for $259. Other items being offered
include video tapes of James' games, local newspaper clippings and game
programs.