Tales from the Cleveland Cavaliers: Lebron James's Rookie Season (Hardcover)

~ Roger Gordon (Author) "The Cleveland Cavaliers of the mid- to late 1990s were a facsimile of what the National Basketball Association is all about..." (more)
Key Phrases: bobblehead doll, media members, franchise history, Gund Arena, Paul Silas, Bill Livingston (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The Cleveland Cavaliers opened the 2003-04 season against the Sacramento Kings. In reality, though, the Cavs’ season really began when they acquired a king five months earlier. The woebegone Cavaliers, just off a 17-65 season—their fourth straight year of 50 defeats or more—hit the jackpot. They garnered the number one pick in the June NBA draft by winning the league’s draft lottery. That meant one thing—LeBron was coming to town, or rather, sticking around. As in LeBron James, the sensational high school phenom who led nearby Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary to state titles in three of his four years there. Now referred to as "King James," LeBron became the first high school underclassman featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he was billed as "The Chosen One" in his junior year. James traveled some 35 miles up Interstate 77 to carry on his stellar hoops career. In 2002-03, he led his high school team to a state title. The next season, he almost steered his professional team to its first postseason appearance in six years. The Cavs more than doubled their victory total from the year before, finishing 35-47 as James became the first Cavalier to win the NBA’s Rookie of the Year honor.

In Tales from the Cleveland Cavaliers: The Rookie Season of LeBron James, readers will find anecdotes about this special rookie and rare commodity—plus the rest of the Cavaliers, from celebrations on the day lottery luck shone upon the team and the anticipation of LeBron’s debut in Sacramento to disappointments like the season-opening five-game losing streak and 6-19 start; from the excitement of a young team maturing under the guidance of battle-tested head coach Paul Silas to the shrewd moves of general manager Jim Paxson. There were also the virtually absurd moments, like the near riot on LeBron James bobblehead night and the heartbreak of point guard Jeff McInnis’s lateseason injury that likely cost the Cavs a playoff berth. Through the eyes and ears of the media, coaches, players, fans and more, Tales from the Cleveland Cavaliers: The Rookie Season of LeBron James is a must-read for any Cleveland Cavaliers or NBA fan. It is a whimsical reflection on the rebirth of a forlorn franchise that was quite possibly a ping-pong ball away from relocating to Louisville, Kentucky. It is a look back at how a team led by a teenage kid with remarkable skills, awesome strength, and incredible poise went from being the laughingstock of the NBA to being a true playoff contender and a force to be reckoned with in the years to come.

About the Author

Roger Gordon is a freelance writer who has written four books, including Cleveland Browns: A to Z for Sports Publishing. He has been an avid sports fan for years and has been following the Cleveland Cavaliers since 1976. Gordon resides in Canton, Ohio.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 200 pages
• Publisher: Sports Publishing LLC (November 30, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582618399
• ISBN-13: 978-1582618395
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,262,708 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars God bless LeBron James, November 19, 2004

By	Chris (St.Louis,MO) - See all my reviews

Go all people from the Class of 2003 it makes that little Dwight Howard look like a little kid. Emeka Okafor should have been the number one pick in the Draft.Sebastian Telfair was my favorite player from 04 and hopefully he makes it in the NBA.These players are rated on a number of things such as Hype-Potential and of course actual skills

Here are the Last 5 Recruiting Classes top 10 and ratings

The 2004 Superclass
1.Sebastian Telfair-PG 5-11 When it comes to hype there was no one in the country last year besides maybe Mayo(07) 10+
2.Dwight Howard PF 6-10 This little boy was good 10+
3.Shaun Livingston PG 6-7 A Pure Pass 1st tall point 9.5
4.Rudy Gay SF 6-9 A Man Child for sure 9
5.Josh Smith SF 6-9 Decided to go to to the NBA 9
6.Marvin Williams SF 6-8 The #2 College Freshman 8
7.Al Jefferson PF 6-9 I Really liked the guy 8
8.Daniel Gibson PG 6-2 A Taller a T.J. Ford 8
9.LeMarcus Alridge PF 6-11 A Big Tall prospect 7
10.Malik Haiston SG 6-6 Could be rated higher later 7

Now lets go the 2003 Class the one I am from

1.LeBron James Pick 6-8 The Only guy that may have been more hyped coming out as a amateaur would have been Chamberlain
also see Alcindor-Ewing-Sampson-Hawkins also 10+
2.Chris Paul PG 6-0 When you are in a class with players like Lucas(75)-Anderson(91)-Williams(02) your good 10
3.Luol Deng SF 6-8 I Love Duke 9
4.Chris Taft PG 6-10 Expect about 16 and 12 9
5.Mustafa Shakur PG 6-3 The Next also 8
6.J.R. Giddens SG 6-5 Oretty good 3 days older then 7
7.Sean Banks SF 6-8 Dude can flat out score 7
8.Kendrick Perkins C 6-10 03 version of Jefferson to me 7
9.Ndubi Ebe SF 6-9 A year to early 6
10.Travis Outlaw SF 6-9 See above 6

Now on to some of the other classes

2002-Carmelo-Stoudamire-Felton-Bosh Rating 8.5
2001-Curry-Wagner-Brown-Chandler-Ford-Okafor 9.5
2000-Miles-Wade-Randolph-Butler-Hayes 8.0
1999-J.Williams-Gooden-Bender-Dunleavy-Joe Johnson 7.5
1998-Swift-Jefferson-Harrington-Magettee-Lewis 8.5
1997-T Mac-Odom-Brand-Hughes-Artest-B.Davis-Redd 9.5
1996-Kobe-J.O'Neal-Francis-K Mart-Bibby-Hamilton 9.5
1995-Garnett-Carter-Marbury-Billups-Jamison-Alston 10.0
1994-Iverson-Pierce-Lafrentz-Bonzie Wwlls-Olowakandi 6.0
1993-Stackhouse-Duncan-Wallace-Allen-Camby-Rahim 10.0
1992-Kidd-Williamson-Delk-Wallace-Trent-Kittles 5.5
1991-Robinson-Webber-J.Howard-Rose-O'Bannon-Stoudamire 9.5
1990-Hill-Penny-Mashburn-Eddie Jones-Montross 8.5

More to come later on