LeBron James - Biography

Last Editor: horeol				LeBron James Biography -   Name : LeBron James Date of Birth : December 30, 1984 Place of Birth : Akron, Ohio, U.S. Birth Name : LeBron Raymone James Height : 6 ft 8 in Nationality : American Occupation : Professional basketball player

LeBron James Trivia -

NBA Rookie of the Year: 2004 NBA All-Rookie First Team: 2004 NBA Scoring Champion: 2008 2-time NBA All-Star Game MVP: 2006, 2008 4-time NBA All-Star: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 Bronze medal with Team USA, 2004 Summer Olympic Games Gold medal with Team USA, 2008 Summer Olympic Games Bronze medal with Team USA, 2006 FIBA World Championship Gold medal with Team USA, 2007 FIBA Americas Championship

LeBron James Detailed Biography -

LeBron Raymone James (born December 30, 1984 in Akron, Ohio) is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). James, commonly nicknamed "King James," was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA star while still in at St. Vincent - St. Mary High School, and was named Ohio's "Mr. Basketball" three times. At the age of 18, he was selected with the first overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Cavaliers and signed an unprecedented US$90 million shoe contract with Nike before his NBA debut. He has since set numerous youngest player records. During his first season, he received the NBA Rookie of the Year Award and in the following four seasons received All-NBA and All-Star honors. He has led the Cavaliers to consecutive playoff appearances in 2006, 2007, and 2008; in 2007, the team advanced to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1992 and the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history. James is listed as a small forward, but often handles the ball and runs the Cavaliers' offense as a point guard would. James is also a member of the United States men's national basketball team winning the bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics and redeeming that result by winning the gold medal at the 2008 Olympics. He finished second in the league's Most Valuable Player balloting in 2006. James has established himself as a legitimate triple-double threat and has averaged 27.3 points, 6.6 assists and 6.9 rebounds per game for his career. As of the 2007–08 season, he has recorded 17 triple-doubles in his career, with 14 in the regular season and 3 in the postseason. On offense, James utilizes his quickness, size, and strength to get past defenders. James is known for his exceptional upper body strength. When penetrating to the basket, James exhibits superb body control, adjusting his shot in mid-air according to the defense, allowing him to absorb contact and finish at the basket. He is also proficient at finishing around the rim with both hands. In the 2005–06 season, he led the league in completed traditional three point plays. He is a solid rebounder who regularly ranks among the league leaders in rebounds for the small forward position. His overall skill sets and on-court play has led to many comparisons to NBA legends Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordan. Although James exhibits exceptional offensive ability, he has yet to be featured on the NBA All-Defensive Team and has struggled with his free throw shooting — he averaged a subpar .698 free throw percentage in the 2006-07 season. James has two children with his high school sweetheart, Savannah Brinson. The first, LeBron James Jr., was born on October 6, 2004 and the second, Bryce Maximus James, on June 14, 2007. During his sophomore year at St. Vincent - St. Mary High School, he was named first-team all-state as a wide receiver in football, and in his junior year, he led his team to the state semifinals. In basketball, James compared himself to a young Penny Hardaway. James stated, "Penny sees the whole floor and can score" and that, "He's still one of my favorite players of all-time." James has endorsement contracts with Nike, Sprite, Glacéau, Bubblicious, and Upper Deck. With Nike, James has released five signature shoe styles, and two additional shoes (Soldier, Soldier 2). He has acted in a series of commercials called "The LeBrons". During the 2007 NBA Playoffs, James drew criticism when he declined to sign a petition started by his teammate, Ira Newble, regarding the Chinese government's alleged involvement in the ongoing conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan, stating that he did not know enough about the issue. A year later, however, James did talk publicly about the issue, saying, "At the end of the day we're talking about human rights. And people should understand that human rights and people's lives are in jeopardy. We're not talking about contracts here. We're not talking about money. We're talking about people's lives being lost and that means a lot more to me than some money or a contract." James, with comedian Jimmy Kimmel, co-hosted the 2007 ESPY Awards. James himself was nominated for three ESPYs: Best Male Athlete, Best NBA Player (winner), and Best Record Breaking Performance. The Record Breaking performance was when he scored 48 points in Game 5 of the 2007 NBA Eastern Conference Finals against the Detroit Pistons, including 29 of the last 30 points and all of the teams 25 points in overtime. In other comedic pursuits, James hosted the 33rd season premiere of Saturday Night Live. The show's creator Lorne Michaels praised him for his versatility. In December 2007, James was ranked at 1 in the Forbes Top 20 Earners Under 25 with annual earnings of $27 million. James has received criticism from Cleveland fans and critics for attending Cleveland Indians games against the New York Yankees dressed in a Yankees hat. James said, "As individuals I want every Indian to succeed. I love all these fans for coming out and supporting us. But team-wise I want the Yankees to win." Despite residing in Ohio for all of his childhood, James added that he grew up as a Yankees fan, a Dallas Cowboys fan for the NFL and a Chicago Bulls fan for the NBA. In January 2008, Nike released of the Air Zoom V LeBron shoe, which featured a Yankees-type motif and was made available only in New York City. In March 2008, James became the first black man to appear on the cover of Vogue magazine, posing with Gisele Bündchen. He also was the third man to appear on the cover of Vogue, after Richard Gere and George Clooney. Some considered the cover offensive, describing the positioning of James and Bündchen as a reference to classic imagery of the movie monster King Kong. James told the The Plain Dealer he was pleased with the cover, saying he was "just showing a little emotion," and "Everything my name is on is going to be criticized in a good way or bad way." In June 2008, James donated $20,000 to a committee to elect Barack Obama. In August 2008, a source close to James said he would strongly consider playing in Europe if given a $50-million annual salary.