Overkill? Nah...

["Stephen Beauregard" <sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Overkill? Nah...

LeBron James's momentous debut as a pro -- in a meaningless summer warmup game
-- is a can't miss event (isn't it?). The Globe ordered Jackie MacMullan to
chronicle the epic milestones of this historic evening

By Jackie MacMullan, Globe Columnist, 7/9/2003

RLANDO, Fla. -- They came, when you think about it, to watch LeBron James come
up short.



What else could he have possibly done? The hype was overwhelming, and,
ultimately annoying. People were already becoming sick of this wondrous
teenage basketball gem, and they hadn't even seen him play.

The No. 1 pick of the Cleveland Cavaliers has already generated more buzz than
Larry Bird and Magic Johnson did as rookies -- combined. James has already
landed more endorsement dollars than one Michael Jeffrey Jordan ever dreamed
about as the rookie for the (not yet world champion) Chicago Bulls.

Nobody could possibly be that good, that entertaining, that scintillating.

Nobody could be expected to endure the kind of pressure and scrutiny that has
been building since James was a freshman in high school.

''It just boggles your mind,'' said Cleveland coach Paul Silas, minutes before
James's professional debut at the Pepsi Pro Summer League in Orlando. ''There
are 15,000 people in this arena, and they've all come to see him. We were
coming in here tonight, and there's 20 or 30 cameras, waiting for him. The kid
has not played a minute yet, and they're lining up so they can get him walking
into the locker room.''

Silas squinted through the glare of the bright lights to gauge whether this
18-year-old boy, who has been targeted to save Cleveland Cavaliers basketball,
was at all nervous.

''Not a bit,'' his coach reported. ''He's the most confident kid I've ever
seen.''

With a host of NBA heavyweights, including Danny Ainge, Joe Dumars, and Larry
Brown looking on courtside, LeBron James accomplished the unthinkable last
night: He lived up to his billing. It was never his intention to tiptoe
politely into David Stern's playground. James bounded onto the hardwood with
the aim of validating his status as the top pick in this year's crop of young
stars, and, for the most part, succeeded with equal parts flash and
fundamental skill. That's not to say his performance was flawless. James
seemed to tire in the second half, and threw the ball away needlessly. He was
exposed occasionally on defense in spite of his cat-quick hands, which
deflected a number of passes. His shot selection was, at times, shall we say,
Walkeresque. That, however, does not separate him from a number of his NBA
peers.

James is scheduled to come to Boston with his team for our city's summer
league next week. There have been rumblings he would not make the trip, but
James said last night he would play in some, but not all of the games.

''I'll be there. We're going to have a tea party.''

In James's Orlando debut, he scored 10 of his 14 points in the first half,
when the glare was the brightest, and his resolve at its peak. Both James --
and the crowd -- suffered through a letdown in the second half, an almost
inevitable development.

''The biggest thing tonight for me was stamina,'' said James. ''The courts
were way longer than the high school courts I played on.''

The scrutiny James was under was so intense, the crowd actually booed him in
warmups when he executed a textbook layup, instead of a high-flying monster
dunk.

''That won't bother him,'' Silas said. ''The only thing I worry about is how
he'll handle failure.''

Here's a snapshot, Paul: LeBron James's first official offensive foray into
professional basketball consisted of an off-balance drive to the hoop that
clanged lightly off the rim. James turned, disgusted, as if to retreat down
the floor, then wheeled around, picked off the outlet pass, and jammed it home
so viciously and demonstratively, he was called for a delay-of- game warning
on his first pro basket.

Unlike most of the other summer league entries, the team Cleveland put on the
floor last night could realistically become a legitimate regular-season
lineup. James started alongside his new best friend, Darius Miles, young guard
Dajuan Wagner, center DeSagana Diop, who already looks like a guy who can
rebound, block shots and shoot a little, and former Duke stud Carlos Boozer.

Most of the crowd paid little attention to James's running mates. They were
too fixated on the league's latest prodigy.

See LeBron pull up in transition and stroke a 15-footer. See LeBron drive,
draw contact, and sink two free throws without so much as a ripple. See LeBron
execute a backdoor cut, receive the pass from Miles, and effortlessly float in
a reverse lay-in.

See LeBron fire a lead pass to the center, Diop, in transition. See LeBron run
the break himself, receiving the pass from Miles, and coax in a falling,
dipsy-doodle up and under lay-in that was eerily similar to the moves of
another icon who once wore No. 23.

It's one thing to show flashes of Jordan. It's quite another to then thread a
no-look bounce pass to Wesley Wilson for a basket that could have been spliced
right out of Magic Johnson's highlight reel.

''If I play like this every night,'' said James, who also had seven rebounds
and six assists, ''I'll be real happy.'' Now for the disclaimers. This was
summer league action against a number of players who will never see NBA
action. James was guarded primarily by Orlando second-round pick Keith Bogans,
who may or may not make Orlando's opening night roster.

James has some work to do. He looked silly when he dribbled at the top of the
key, worked the clock down to one second, then airballed his 3-point attempt.
He looked helpless when he bit on Reece Gaines's upfake, and Gaines plowed
right past him. He looked positively embarrassed when Orlando rookie Britton
Johnsen intercepted his pass, then postered him down the other end with a
take-that dunk.

Johnsen has a great story to tell his kids some day. By then, he'll probably
be a banker, advising James on how to invest his millions.

The Kid, after all, is now officially a pro -- and that's no hype.

Thanks,

Steve
sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx

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