Congratulations, you got him. You reeled him in. Public enemy number one has now been neutralized for the time being. No more SportsCenter highlights, no more games televised on pay-per-view. LeBron James can no longer play high school basketball.
Are we happy now?
James has become the center of everyone's attention, riding a wave of publicity as the top high school basketball player in the nation and the likely top pick in next year's NBA Draft.
Then, James' dream season came to a crashing halt as he was ruled ineligible to play high school basketball by the Ohio High School Athletic Association after accepting two jerseys, with a combined worth of over $800, for free. This ruling comes weeks after receiving a $52,000 Hummer from his mother, who took out a bank loan to pay for the extravagant birthday present.
Though a year from now, when James' will be raking in millions upon millions of dollars, this will likely be nothing but a distant memory, right now this stands as the anticlimactic end to the high school career of one of amateur basketball's brightest stars. It is impossible to beat around the bush here; James did wrong by accepting the jerseys for nothing more than a photo of him. He broke the rules. He corrupted his amateur status.
But was he the first to do so? Certainly not. LeBron James has not been an amateur for quite a while.
Over the past year, the public has been bombarded with LeBron James, the amazing basketball prodigy. James, a 6-foot-8 do-it-all player, was the first basketball player to win USA Today's High School Player of the Year award as a junior. He has led the St. Vincent-St. Mary squad to the top spot in the USA high school polls. There is no doubt that on the court, James is a man among boys. James is a freak-of-nature athlete who can jump out of the gym. He has supreme court vision and a steadily improving jumper. He already has been prematurely hailed as a combination of Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan.
Basketball fans recognize and appreciate the game. Corporate America sees the next big thing.
The exploitation began over a year ago as James graced the Cover of Sports Illustrated, still only a high school junior. This year, as he has become a household name, the media attention has soared to astronomical levels. His wristbands are auctioned off on eBay. His SVSM home games are not played at the school's gym, they're played at The University of Akron. His team's games aren't just on local television, they're on pay-per-view. His road games aren't just around the state, they're around the country as SVSM rakes in $15,000 in appearance fees to participate in tournaments across the country. Two of ESPN2's most highly rated broadcasts were when James' SVSM team graced the network. James, also an ESPN the magazine cover boy, has Nike and Adidas waging war for the rights to the feet of the young phenom.
Granted, James is not the poor unfortunate victim in all of this. He does refer to himself as "King James." He does point and yell after he victimizes an opponent with a slam. He beats his chest after netting a jumper. He cheats on defense, seemingly exerting himself only when he gets a chance at a big block or steal that will lead to a big transition opportunity. But it's important to remember what so many seem to forget; he's still a kid. He's just turned 18 years old. How can we possibly expect perfection, he's only in high school.
Just because James' performances on the court have redefined our expectations, we still do not have the right to hold him to an equally high standard off the court.
However Corporate America -- the television networks, the magazines, the sneaker companies, and the sponsors--seem to have no problem making a spectacle of James.
We don't see LeBron James the kid. We see the round
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