Mar 21 2008
King James --- That Good or Overrated?

James was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the first overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft. Facing the Sacramento Kings in his first NBA game, James recorded 25 points, 9 assists, 6 rebounds, and 4 steals and shot 60% from the floor. After the game during the press conference, James was asked who he wanted to be like the most and his answer was Jason Kidd. James had admired Kidd since he took the floor in 1994 and dedicated his first triple double to him. James praised Kidd by saying he was the best point guard alive today, and his passing abilities were second to none. After recording a season-high 41 points against the New Jersey Nets, James became the youngest player in league history to score at least 40 points in a game. He averaged 20.9 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.5 rebounds per game for the season, and was named 2003-04 NBA Rookie of the Year; becoming the first Cavalier and youngest NBA player to ever receive the award. He joined Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan as the only three players in NBA history to average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists per game in their rookie season. The Cavaliers improved by 18 wins and concluded the regular season with a 35–47 record, but failed to make the playoffs.

James continued his dominant play, earning his fourth consecutive All-Star Game appearance and once again positioning himself as one of the frontrunners for the NBA Most Valuable Player award. He won the 2008 All-Star Game MVP with 27 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals as the Eastern Conference All-Stars defeated their Western counterparts, 134–128. On February 19, 2008, James recorded his fifth triple double of the 2007–08 season by putting up 26 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists against the Houston Rockets. It was the 15th triple double of his career. He is the third youngest player to post 15 triple doubles, behind Oscar Robertson and Magic Johnson. He scored his 6th triple double of the season and 16th of his career against the Indiana Pacers the very next game. It was the second time during the season that he had a triple double in back-to-back games. The last player to accomplish that feat was Magic Johnson in 1988. James finished the season with seven triple doubles, breaking his personal and team records for triple doubles in a season and 17 career triple doubles broke his team record as well.

On February 27, 2008, against the Boston Celtics, James became the youngest person to score 10,000 points in his career at 23 years and 59 days, achieving the feat in style with a slam-dunk over 11-time All-Star Kevin Garnett, eclipsing the old mark by more than a year. James did so in 368 games, the ninth fastest in league history. On March 5, 2008, James scored 50 points with 8 rebounds and 10 assists on the New York Knicks, becoming only the third player since the ABA-NBA merger to record a 50-point 10-assist game.[37] On March 21, 2008, James scored 29 points against the Toronto Raptors, taking him past Brad Daugherty's all-time Cavaliers scoring record of 10,389 points. Daugherty achieved this record over the course of 548 games, while James took only 380 games to score 10,414 points.

All told, James had propelled Cleveland to a 45–37 record, good for second place in the Central Division and the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. Prior to Cleveland's first-round series versus the Washington Wizards, Wizards guard Deshawn Stevenson said James was "overrated". The Cavaliers would go on and win the series in 6 games (4–2), setting up a meeting with the Boston Celtics. The series was decided by the seventh game in Boston. James and opponent Paul Pierce each scored 40+ points, but the Cavaliers could not get a victory, thus losing the series (4–3).
"Answering" a 61-point game by Kobe Bryant two days before, James nearly scored the first 50-point triple double since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1975, when he recorded 52 points, 11 assists, and 9 rebounds against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on February 4. The game was originally counted as a triple double, but the NBA later took away one rebound.

On February 14, 2009 at the All-Star Game in Phoenix, when asked by Cheryl Miller whether he will participate in the 2010 Slam Dunk Contest, he said that he is going to be part of it, following the path of mercurial superstars Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. James scored 55 points in a win over the Milwaukee Bucks on February 20, 2009.