NBA commissioner David Stern announced "With the first pick in the 2003 NBA Draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers select LeBron James,".
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On this day, 18 years ago, the Cleveland Cavaliers drafted Lebron Raymone James with the first pick in the 2003 NBA draft. And the rest is history. LeBron James came to the league as a prodigy, but when he retires, he’ll be remembered as a legend. The King first came into the spotlight with his freakish athleticism during his high school days.
A bright-eyed youngster named LeBron James graduated from St. Vincent St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio. Fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers rejoiced that the most highly touted NBA prospect since Shaquille O’Neal would soon be joining their team as the No. 1 overall draft pick of 2003. For 18-year-old LeBron, the jump to the professional level came amazingly fast.
“I’m LeBron James from Akron, Ohio, from the inner city. I’m not even supposed to be here…I’m blessed.”
8 YEARS AGO TODAY, LeBron did this to the Spurs in GM7 of the 2013 NBA Finals:
37 PTS | 12 REB | 4 AST | 1 DAGGERpic.twitter.com/icdbd9n5UC
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) June 20, 2021
James played high school basketball in Ohio, the same state that is home to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland knows James well and made him the first choice after winning the draft lottery. NBA commissioner David Stern made the announcement in New York’s Madison Square Garden. “With the first pick in the 2003 NBA Draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers select LeBron James”.
James’ ‘superstar in the making’ status was common knowledge even then. Nike gave him a huge $90 million shoe contract. While thrilled to be the first pick, James said he just wants to help the Cavaliers improve. “This is a long-time dream to finally accomplish this and it finally shows that the hard work has finally paid off for me. Last year we [Cleveland] were not pretty good. But I feel like we can get better every day as a team,” he said. “That is going to be my biggest goal this year. I am not for individual things, I am all about the team.”
From his first day in the league, LeBron James hit the ground running. It was evident by that point that he was the real deal.
Within four years, the Cavaliers had gone from a mediocre NBA team to a legitimate playoff contender. James’ stellar performance in the 2007 playoffs against Detroit took the Cavaliers to their first NBA Finals appearance. Although they were swept by a superior San Antonio Spurs team.
There was perceptible hope that James’ would help carry the city to its first sports championship since Jim Brown led the Cleveland Browns (American Baseball) to a world title in 1964. What’s even more impressive is the fact that a 22-year-old James led the Cavaliers to the 2007 NBA Finals.
When people say @KingJames doesn’t have that killer instinct… scored the last 25 points for the Cavs in an EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS GAME AT 22 years old
One of the most underrated games of LeBron James career! pic.twitter.com/pwXMwGAzCZ
— Ben Stinar (@BenStinar) June 23, 2021
During his first 7 years, he won several individual accolades, including 2 NBA MVP awards.
The boiling point reached when the Cavaliers were dominated by the Boston Celtics in the 2009 NBA Playoffs. James looked uninterested in playing for the team anymore and then came “The Decision” in the 2010 NBA offseason.
LeBron finally decided to move on. He formed a super team with Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade in Miami in hopes of finally winning the first ring of his career. He became the villain in front of the NBA.
For the next 4 years, LeBron was in his prime, tormenting opponents left and right. The gamble paid off, and the Heat made it to the NBA Finals for four consecutive years. LeBron and the Heat won two NBA Champions (2012 & 2013) and he was the Finals MVP both times.
Both Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh were struggling from injury troubles and Miami as whole were on the decline. There was still unfinished business for the King: To Bring a championship to the city of Cleveland.
In the 2014 offseason, LeBron announced his return to Cleveland in hopes of finally ending the city’s championship drought. This time around, the franchise was keen to provide their King all the help he needed. They already had Kyrie Irving, a young but promising point guard who was perfect for LeBron. Furthermore, the Cavs traded for Kevin Love, who was on the path to becoming an NBA superstar with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Cavs assembled an excellent team for James to lead. They reached the 2015 NBA Finals, but due to unfortunate injuries to Irving and Love, James was left alone against the Western Conference powerhouse – the Golden State Warriors.
The two sides continued to battle for the next 3 seasons as the rivalry between LeBron James and Steph Curry took shape. While Curry might have the better Finals record, the 2016 NBA Finals were a nightmare for the Warriors’ fans. In the 2016 Finals, LeBron and Kyrie played out of their minds and made a historical comeback after being down 3-1.
“Believeland” ⚔️ ?
5 years ago, LeBron James and Kyrie Irving led the Cleveland Cavaliers to their first NBA title in franchise history.
? @NBATV pic.twitter.com/9m5BeaKeAo
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) June 19, 2021
After winning the championship, LeBron was in tears and said “CLEVELAND THIS IS FOR YOU!”.
James left the Cavaliers for a second time after the 2018 NBA Finals. But this time around, he got the farewell he deserved for giving his all for the organization for so long.
