23 years ago - LeBron made his preseason debut.
I remember they used to televise his high school games, and it was hilarious - like a 30yo man playing against kindergarteners
And he played for a (relatively) trash high school but refused to leave because he was with his boys. Still killed everyone.
It paid off for everyone. LeBron became all time great, and his boys were able to build lucrative careers and have his back.
Pretty incredible how none of the guys ended up leeching. They all made something for themselves. The only proper leech is Brian Windhorst.
St. V-M is a perfectly good Catholic high school. If I were picking a private high school in the area, the only one I’d definitively pick over it is Western Reserve Academy. Maybe Walsh Jesuit too, but Walsh, Hoban, and St. V-M are all similar. Their basketball team is also generally pretty decent. Obviously their peak is when they had those guys, but that would be true of any high school in the area.
He and his friends, who he had played AAU ball with for years, went there instead of going to Akron public schools because they would have been split up based on where they lived in Akron.
They didn’t kill everyone, Che k out his last game he played against my high school
Yea it’s weird that the announcers are acting like he was a hidden gem only seen by scouts. His games were primetime on ESPN in high school. Probably had more nationally televised games than most elite college prospects on blue chip programs.
Yep they were must-see events, he was the chosen one since he was like 16.
I’m more a Steph guy than Bron but it’s truly amazing what success and longevity he’s sustained with virtually no controversy
I get what you’re saying but am I the only one who thinks an active NBA player being a spokesperson for a gambling company should be a huge controversy?
Retired player is one thing, but an active player is obvious conflict of interest, not to mention the moral implications.
It SHOULD be a huge controversy, but clearly no one with the power to do anything actually gives a damn.
I get the feeling your opinion isn’t exactly unpopular either.
I don’t like it but also it’s on the leagues to legislate that but then the league allows use of their product in the ads and the players likeness so it’s pretty murky there to say the player is in the wrong for it. It’s also probably something congress needs to look in to. Maybe not allow gambling ads at all like they do with tobacco.
It’s extra insane ro me because he already has effectively infinite wealth and is still choosing to do this. It’s like how I constantly see Shaq in commercials when he’s already worth half a billion dollars.
The scandal-free part is really impressive. Family man, gives back to his community, been professional since he was a kid.
At the time, I thought Blaha & Laimbeer were talking about having not really seen LeBron play against other professional competition just yet. Up to that point, Summer League games weren’t always available on national TV (though sometimes they were) so a fair amount of us had only seen bits and pieces from his performances over the summer.
For whatever reason, I definitely remember the Britton Johnson moment from his first summer league game though. I don’t think that one was nationally televised but it popped up on newscasts like this.
One of the prevailing questions back then was whether LeBron would be one of the first high school stars to actually have an immediate impact at the next level. Prior to Bron, it was generally accepted that you’d need to slow walk those guys to some degree before they were let off the leash.
Go watch high school highlights of Derrick Henry. Man vs fetuses.
That was one of the few reels where I was legitimately concerned for the kids on the other team.
They’re all so damn small in comparison.
“Weight of a franchise on his shoulders” 18 years old lmao
Kings fans are saying the same thing about Darius Acuff. Except he’s 19.
And he’s not LeBron James.
And it’s the Kings
I haven’t seen their birth certificates yet, so I can’t be sure. It’s entirely possible.
Tons of young high draft picks get that label
And? It’s just basketball bro.
you must be fun at parties
I don’t think they go to parties.
Get invited to a lot so I guess so?
Fans were burning his jersey when he left for Miami
Fans are stupid
No it’s not. To many it’s cultural, no to mention the billions of dollar its market it’s worth. To me and you may be 10 tall men throwing around an orange ball, but for many others is much much more
Basketball yes. The NBA? Idk
Yeah but what I’m saying for the player they’re not doing anything special. Theyre just going out there and doing what they’ve done all their life. Don’t make it bigger than it is
Playing in the NBA Finals sure it’s the same pressure you feel at the park down the street.
As I’m sure playing the guitar at the highschool show or at a Rock Festival in Wembley must be the same.
Same thing, who cares if 70k people are watching you live and millions will watch it televised and the videos will be on the internet forever for you to be ridiculed throughout history if you fuck it up
Wait, Bronny’s dad used to play in the NBA?
News to me thought he was just a Galumphs character
he still does, but he used to too.
In the same way Mitch Hedberg used to do drugs
I have some bad news for you
In real life Hedberg was such a hopeless addict he was hospitalized for gangrene on his leg from constant drug use in 2003. About 2 years later he died of an OD. When they say don’t use drugs this is why.
I really really cant stress how much im not going to enjoy his retirement. Dudes been my favorite tv show since I was 8 lmao
It can’t be understated how wild it is that we really only had a one year gap between MJ and Bron because of the Wizards saga. From GOAT to GOAT just like that.
From GOAT to GOAT just like that.
That’s not how GOAT works. There is one. Not multiple.
edit: I love getting downvoted for stating that there can only be one “Greatest of all time”. The illiteracy in US society truly shows again.
You are being downvoted because everyone including you understands the premise of his comment and you are choosing to make a pedantic comment not because you feel clarification is needed but simply because you want to correct someone. Satisfied with that?
You are being downvoted because everyone including you understands the premise of his comment
Every moron who can’t spell out an acronym, maybe.
But the whole reason we’ve come up with the term GOAT in the first place is to assign it to one individual.
Saying there is “GOAT after GOAT” is a level of brainrot no amount of downvotes will make me subscribe to.
went from goat to boat
i don’t believe lebron was the goat in 2002
Lebron was the GOAT In 2002 the same way he is the GOAT in 2026.
It’s insane looking back at his prime. From 2010-2020, Lebron James might have been the most discussed person in the months of May and June. Didn’t matter the circumstances, you turn on the TV during those months and you’d see Lebron in some way or shape.
And the Heat got 4 of the most peak years. What an absolute privilege.
He’s been doing it since GW Bush’s first term. It feels like many lifetimes ago when he started.
look at his physique at 18 thats just insane
That hairline knew what it was.
Damn, he seemed pretty good for a rook. Whatever happened to him?
I heard he’s had sciatica and arthritis recently. Poor guy.
He does a bunch of ads for gambling companies now, really sad story.
BRRRRRR
What happened to that boy?
I ain’t pusha T tho
We bout to put a clappin’ to that boy this season.
Pretty mid career tbh, his kid is cooking rn though 👀
You don’t even want to know man.
They really booed an 18 yo kid before he even stepped on the court…
Booed him and chanted “OVERRATED” the moment he got drafted too
MY BOY BLAHA!!!!
And Bill fuckin’ Laimbeer, lol.
245 pure muscle bron was a super soldier already at 18 lol
Love that this clip had him starting at guard….at 245
Yep. He was the team’s starting point guard initially. Didn’t last too long though, as the team traded for Jeff McInnis pretty early on and slid LeBron over.
I was at this game! My dad had tickets randomly and we decided we should go see the rookie phenom. All I really remember is him having a ridiculous breakaway dunk.
This one right here.
Pretty crazy you were there in person for Darko’s debut too.
Yeah! I remember now that it was really early in the game.
As for darko, I knew then and there that he was going to be unstoppable in this league. Follow for more good basketball opinions.
Time sure flies by damn
A lifetime ago…. wow
Are you a Red Kangaroo?
what does that even mean? I am not a young man so some sayings may go right over my head
I think he meant that 23 years is about a red kangaroo’s lifespan
Correct!
His basketball iq was remarkable for an 18 year old when he came out. Instant leader.
I was a Darius Miles believer for longer than I’d like to admit
Fun fact: I got to see a preseason game between the Lakers and Cavs prior to the start of the 2003 season.
The only thing I remember from that game is that at one point Lakers rookie Kareem Rush got the ball on the baseline maybe 18 feet out from the basket. Darius Miles was standing between him and the hoop, maybe five or six feet away from Kareem. I was sitting several rows up, but was directly behind that basket and positioned on that side of the baseline right between the two players on the court.
From my vantage point, it looked like Kareem had a wide open jumper, which Kareem must have thought too, as he squared up and shot a jumper. But Miles, who hand’t moved an inch, just jumped straight up into the air, fully extended, and swatted the ball several rows up into the stands. He then said something to Kareem and gave him a look like, “Welcome to the NBA.”
They made a fucking Nike commercial about “what if” LeBron isn’t good, where he just froze against the Kings in his rookie debut.
Dude took expectations and exceeded them.
23 years ago, damn
One score and 3 years ago, our King brought fourth, upon this league, a new era
Insane. I was 13 when he was drafted. I am now 36…
Shout out George Blaha. Absolutely Legendary
“WXSP: The TV Station With Game!”
i was in the 5th grade lmaoooo
Lived halfway across the world in the bumfuck middle of nowhere where internet was way less obiquitous and even then people kept talkin about this Lebron James kid who was the next Jordan. The hype was THAT insane and will never be matched.
Superhuman among civilians
Why did they try and turn LBJ into a villain? He eventually grew a unique ego but he could have averaged 15ppg as a 16 year old and contributed to any team. He’s the most unique athlete this country has ever seen and the media just tore him down for clicks and views. I hate our media structure
LeBron’s full highlights from this game are up on YouTube and it’s a pretty fun watch, just in terms of being able to get a grasp on what the vibe was upon his entry into the league.
I actually happened to watch his preseason debut as it happened back then. WXSP was a solid west Michigan Pistons affiliate then. I still remember there being a mid-game poll of Pistons fans asking whether LBJ would be rookie of the year. Something like a third of respondents voted no and I remember George Blaha commenting on how Pistons fans were likely expecting Darko to take home those honors instead.
The debut: https://youtu.be/1Kl0Z-6HLlw?si=AnGcY_bOoIfizRWe
Edit: I guess I should also note this game was Darko’s debut too. And as someone who’d bought alll the Darko hype up to that point (only bolstered when I saw him galloping and soaring for dunks with ease in the open practice at Detroit Mercy), I do remember there being a touch of an “uh-oh” feeling after watching this one.
Darko’s debut highlights: https://youtu.be/KJ_eLleTfLM?si=un0OYeIKit56nwys
George Blaha still doing it btw
This guy will never be a star
Man fuck Bill Laimbeer.