LeBron James on the cover of Sports Illustrated

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Here's the link

Inside the Game
Pressure on phenom is too much too soon
By Terry Foster / The Detroit News


AUBURN HILLS--The next Michael Jordan graced the cover of Sports Illustrated last week -- again.

LeBron James, 17, joins Harold Miner, Grant Hill, Kobe Bryant, Jerry Stackhouse and Felipe Lopez, among others, who have been hailed as the next Jordan. The difference here is James, a 6-foot-7 high school wunderkind from Akron, Ohio, made the cover as a high school junior.

The magazine is touting him as a kid who would be a lottery pick if he -- now get this -- decided to skip his senior year of high school. Some are even saying he would be the No. 1 pick because of his athletic ability and basketball skills.

They say he can play. He has skills like Magic Johnson, Bryant and Jordan. Stackhouse, who saw him play, said James can make "an 80-foot bounce pass on the dime." Shoe companies are already stumbling all over themselves for his services, and agents are slipping him business cards.

I believe this is way too much for somebody this young.

The problem is, what if he doesn't become the next Jordan? Society would view him as a failure. If the kid, heaven forbid, decides to attend college and stay two or three years, people would ask what is wrong with him.

And what if he is the next Stackhouse and not the next Jordan? Failure.

"I am a little wary of that," Stackhouse said. "You look at Felipe Lopez. There were unbelievable expectations they had for him when he got to college. I think that worked against him. Hopefully, LeBron will be able to handle it. But he is talented."

Lopez, incidentally, was a disappointment at St. John's and is now a bench-warmer for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Some advice

Basketball legend Will Robinson's cousin, George "Puk" Burgwin, was a high school phenom in Cleveland in the 1930s. He played on an undefeated, unscored-upon high school football team and handed Jesse Owens his only high school defeat in the 220-yard dash.

Puk stopped studying, partied too hard and was dead at 32.

"I think that (the pressure) is too much at this particular time," Robinson said. "My cousin was the same way. He died because of all of the success he had."

Stackhouse offers this advice for James.

"The only thing is to keep the right people around you," he said. "You are vulnerable at that age with people coming after you offering you this and offering you that. He has to stay clear of that. He will be all right if he does."

But Stack concedes James is a player.

"He is the real deal," Stackhouse said.

Is he better than you?

"No," Stackhouse said, smiling. "But he's got a chance."

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Another James article

Bryant says James must make his own decision on going pro
By RUSTY MILLER
AP Sports Writer
February 21, 2002


CLEVELAND (AP) -- Kobe Bryant can't really comprehend what it must be like to be 17-year-old high school star LeBron James.

Bryant, who jumped directly from high school to the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers, said appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a junior -- as James did last week -- might have short-circuited his career.

``I never would have gone to class,'' Bryant said with a laugh.

James, a 6-foot-7 junior at Akron's St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, was on the cover of last week's Sports Illustrated under the heading, ``The Chosen One.''

The article dealt with the incredible hype surrounding James, last year's Mr. Basketball in Ohio for the two-time defending state champions.

Bryant's teammate, Shaquille O'Neal, caused a sensation Wednesday night when he arrived in Ohio early and watched James play in Canton. James finished with 33 points, six rebounds and six assists in a 77-66 victory over Cleveland's Orange High School.

``The kid is great. He deserves all the rankings he gets. Right now, he is the best at this level,'' O'Neal told the (Canton) Repository.

``He is better than most college players,'' he added. ``He could probably play in the NBA, but I think another year here will do him and his body well before that happens. He's very talented.''

James said O'Neal's presence inspired him to put on a show.

``I looked up at him a couple of times, and he gave me a look like it was time to take over and I did that in the third quarter,'' James said.

The Lakers played the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night, and James was expected to attend. He visited briefly with Michael Jordan when Washington played at Cleveland last month.

James has said he would consider making a legal challenge to join the NBA after his junior year of high school. At the same time, he is keeping his options open. Most people think he will join the NBA draft after he graduates from high school, but he also has a list of five prospective colleges: Duke, Florida, Louisville, North Carolina and Ohio State.

Bryant said the decision was a personal one, and his jump to the NBA after graduating from a Pennsylvania high school was the right move for him.

``For me, what better experience are you going to get than coming to the NBA?'' Bryant said.

Cavaliers coach John Lucas worked with Bryant and with former NBA center Moses Malone when both were in high school. Lucas hasn't yet seen James play.

``I know he's awfully, awfully good,'' Lucas said. ``I know what it is to be a young player and to have all that talent and all of that attention on you, too.''

Bryant has some advice for James if he asks whether he should make the move.

``Do what you want. If you want to go to college you'll be able to learn a lot, I guess. I don't know. People tell me it's a great experience going to college. You miss out on keg parties and things like that,'' Bryant said, smiling. ``But if you come to the NBA, you have to be ready to sacrifice. It might not be a business for you, but it's a business from other people's perspective.''