He was probably the most dominant player there, and averaged 21 points and 6 rebounds… as a freshman. He was so good that he led the team to a record of 27-0, and went on to win the Division III State Title. 

The next year, he continued to honor his incredible work ethic, and averaged 25.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and 3.8 steals per game. He was so good that he led the team to a 26-1 record, won the title again, was named Ohio Mr. Basketball, and selected to the USA Today All-USA First Team, and became the first sophomore to do either of those things. The next year, constantly increasing, he averaged 29 points, 8.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists, and 3.3 steals per game. He led the team to a 23-4 record, and unfortunately lost in the final round in the Division II State Title championship game. The drama began to unfold as LeBron petitioned to be in the NBA draft, not being able to because he didn’t have a high school diploma. Through the stress of constant attention and pressure, he gave in and actually smoked pot once. 

The next year, he averaged even more, including 31.6 points and 9.6 rebounds. He was so good that Time Warner Cable offered his games to subscribers throughout the season, but with a price. He again became Ohio Mr. Basketball, and was selected to the USA Today All-USA First Team. The drama ensued, as his mother then bought him a $50,000 Hummer truck for his birthday, which caused a lot of controversy, and even almost broke state laws that time. Soon afterwards, he accepted old jerseys that were in total worth about $845 from an urban clothing store, in a deal for pictures with him. Violating OHSAA rules, he was stripped of high school sports eligibility. After appealing, it was eventually pushed down to a 2-game suspension. Unfortunately, the only real loss that the team had that season was a forfeit while James was suspended, and they went 26-1. In his first game right after the suspension, James scored an incredible 52 points. 

The next year, LeBron averaged 27.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, 7.2 assists, and 2.2 steals per game, and eventually led the Cavs to 42-40, but still didn’t qualify for the playoffs. He did score 56 points against the Toronto Raptors on March 20th, 2005. The next season, hungry for success, James averaged 31.4 points, 7 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game, and had the Cavs make the playoffs for the first time in 8 years, and finished 2nd place in MVP voting, to none other than the well-experienced Steve Nash. Afterwards, in LeBron’s first ever playoff game, he notched a triple-double against the Washington Wizards. Incredibly, in Game 3, he had his first ever game-winning shot, and even better, he had another one in Game 5. He led his team to win the 1st round, before being eliminated by the Detroit in Round 2. The next year, he bounced back incredibly well. 

Although his stats decreased slightly in his 2006-2007 season, and faced a lot media pressure, he still averaged incredible numbers, with 27.3, 6.7, and 6. The Cavaliers still had a pretty good season, with 50 wins and playoff qualification. They were developing still, and LeBron was far from done growing as a player. It didnt matter. Throughout the playoffs, LeBron showed the world that he was still full of greatness. Although the Cavaliers were the 2nd seed, in the ECF (Eastern Conference Finals), he dropped an incredible 48 points, along with 9 rebounds and 7 assists. He was so completely dominant that out of Cleveland’s last 30 points, 29 of them belonged to LeBron. As if this wasn’t good enough, he also hit the game-winning shot. The performance was definitely one of the greatest playoff performances ever. Current Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, a commentator in 2007, described the performance as “Jordan-esque”, referring to the man who is referred to by the vast majority as the greatest of all time, and was known to be very reliable and truly incredibly to watch--Michael Jordan. 

To be mentioned in the same breath as this man is an achievement of a lifetime. Being the only All-Star on the team, he still led them to the NBA Finals, but bowed down to a more experienced playoff team, the San Antonio Spurs, with Tim Duncan and Tony Parker. Cleveland was eliminated to a sweep, but LeBron had another taste of success, of greatness.

He certainly wanted more.

He knew there was more where that came from. 

In the 2007-2008 season, he was named the All-Star MVP twice in a row. He earned his first scoring championship title that year, averaging 30 PPG, the highest in the league. Cleveland did not reach 50 wins that year, but was ready for another postseason. As usual, Cleveland eliminated Washington, to make that 3 in a row, but was beaten in 7 games by Boston in the next round. To get to a seven game series with the eventual champion that year is highly impressive, with only one All-Star. In Game 7, LeBron dropped a game-high 45 points, to pass Paul Pierce’s (Boston) 41. LeBron became the first Cavalier MVP. 

In all honesty, I cannot think of a better chasedown blocker than LeBron James. He has shown numerous clutch chasedown blocks in the 2016 finals, which I will get to later.

The next season, LeBron finished with 23 total chasedown blocks and 93 blocks and finished 2nd in DPOY (Defensive Player of the Year) voting, and, incredibly, Cleveland went 66-16, with 2 All-Star players. After acquiring guard Mo Williams, the Cavs were much more dominant and just generally better than before. In the first two rounds, Cleveland swept Detroit and Atlanta, and met up with Orlando in the Conference Finals. He made the game-winner in Game 2 to tie the series at one game apiece. In Game 1, LeBron scored 49 on 66% shooting in a loss. Once again proving his greatness, LeBron averaged 38.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 8 assists.

The next year, LeBron would play point guard for most of the season, unlike his normal position of small forward. It didn’t matter as LeBron continued to dominate his way to his 2nd MVP award. In addition, his playstyle definitely matched that of a scoring point guard, while averaging 8.6 assists. LeBron and the Cavaliers were eliminated in the 2nd round by Boston, with James scoring 15 points in Game 5 and shooting 20% from the field. 

In 2010, LeBron became an unrestricted free agent. He began some incredible drama on his ESPN special The Decision, showing his choice of new team. He was contacted by several teams at that time. Through the drama, James ensued even more by signing with the Miami Heat. The controversial thing about this deicision is that two other All-Stars, that of Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, signed with the Heat soon afterwards. He was called names like “soft”, LeFlop, and was prone to many insults as such. It was rumor that LeBron and the other two discussed their selective free agencies, and made a final decision--Miami. It was also rumored that the president of the Heat, Pat Riley, influenced their decisions. 

Through the 2010-2011 season, LeBron played with the antagonist role that the media, the fans, and even some former NBA players had given him. It didn’t matter, though, as he still retained averaged of about 27, 7 and 8. In the NBA Finals that year, LeBron was known to have “choked” and fallen under pressure. He averaged an incredibly low 17.8 points per game. This was just the icing on the cake for LeBron haters. 

After the embarrassing loss to Dallas, where everybody was thinking that Miami would crush the team that had never even won a ring before. 

LeBron learnt a valuable lesson that night. Even though they were by far the much better team, it was really LeBron who couldn’t hold them together. When the team had only had a few games together, and Dwyane Wade was considered the leader of the team (and actually was), they all decided to put the team’s success in front of their own. Dwyane talked to LeBron, and said that he couldn’t be the leader anymore. He had to let a much more talented and experienced player, such as LeBron, lead the team. LeBron had led his teams his whole life, and by far he has had quite a bit of success. 

Without LeBron, the team crumbled. After being humbled from this experience, he quickly decided that he couldn’t accept failure like this. He made a big career move. He took it to someone who has been there, done that, and is easily one of the top 5 post players of all time--Hakeem Olajuwon. 

In many movies, the main character goes through rigorous training to acquire the skill set needed for a specific job. A lot of times, they experience success at first, but when confronted with the final challenge, the ultimate obstacle, they falter. In this case, LeBron did exactly that. And in order to a) improve himself to a championship level player, and b) gain more respect, and finally c) be able to accomplish things even when put at a disadvantage, he decided to spend the entire offseason training with Hakeem. Hakeem transformed him, and it was quite visible. Hakeem said LeBron was a “special pupil”. He has trained multiple NBA stars, such as Yao Ming or Dwight Howard, but LeBron was eager to learn and to get better. He had a special aura around him. 

Afterwards, LeBron earned his third MVP award. In the postseason, the Heat faced up against the Pacers, and they were eliminated in six games. James scored 45 points later in the offseason to help beat the Boston Celtics in the ECF. Facing up against the Thunder, James was ready. In Game 4, where the Heat were winning 3-1, James hit a clutch 3-pointer to give the Heat a lead. They went on to win the game, and let James claim his first ever championship. 

The next year, James was really beginning to approach greatness. He averaged 29.7 points and 7.8 assists to lead the Heat to a twenty-seven game winning streak, only the 3rd most in NBA history! Miami finished with a 66-16 record. James earned his 4th MVP Award. In the Conference Finals, James hit another clutch shot against the Pacers, a game-winning layup. As the Heat made the Finals once again, LeBron was criticized for poor play as the Heat fell behind. 

Game 6 was a historically good game. LeBron recorded a 16-point fourth quarter triple double game, as his teammate Ray Allen hit a renowned 3-pointer to tie it up before OT. The Heat eventually won the game. In Game 7, James tied the finals record for most points scored in a Game 7 in the Finals, with 37 points. He was named Finals MVP. 

In the next season, James scored a career-high 61 points against Charlotte. In Game 4 in the 2nd round, James scored an incredibe 49 points. They eventually got their way to the Finals for the fourth straight year, becoming 1 of 4 teams to do this. This was James’ 4th as well, as his other Finals appearance was 3 years back from his Finals against Dallas. James missed most of the 4th quarter in Game 1, but helped the Heat win Game 2 with 35 points and 65% shooting efficiency. San Antonio won the series in 5 games, but James still averaged 28.2 points, 10.9 rebounds, 7.3 assists, and 2.3 steals per game.

The Return

James, while in free agency, revealed that he would return to the Cavaliers via an essay, showcased in Sports Illustrated. At the time, Cleveland was one of the worst teams in the league. They had the worst overall record throughout the seasons that LeBron played with the Heat. The team already had a bit of star power, but they needed someone/something to get them going…

LeBron has never really had a big injury, and in the 2014-2015 he had the longest injured stretch of his career: 2 weeks. It didn’t really matter, as LeBron averaged about 25, 6 and 7 throughout the season. He was remarkably well-greeted as a Cavalier once again. He hit a clutch jumper against Chicago to tie the series at two games apiece. The Cavs eventually came out on top. They advanced to the Finals, marking LeBron’s 5th straight Finals appearance, and 6th overall. In the Finals, LeBron was insane, averaging 36, 13 and 9. Unfortunately, both of his All-Star teammates were injured, but LeBron still pushed it to Game 6, Even though the Cavs lost, James actually got serious consideration for the Bill Russell Finals MVP Awards because of his insane numbers. 

The Year

During the 2015-2016 season, the Cavs played with a passion. Although their head coach, David Blatt was fired midseason, Cleveland didn’t step out of stride once. James averaged 25, 7 and 7. In the playoffs, Cleveland played with a chip on their shoulder--a big one. They were going to have to face the dauntingly good Warriors, who were coming off the best regular season of all time--with a 73-9 record. Golden State was expected to win in 5 or 6, easily. Cleveland got crushed in the first four games, as Golden State took a 3-1 lead, with two blowout losses. To give some context, no team had ever come back from a 3-1 deficit in the Finals. James realized that the Finals for Cleveland would become his legacy. If it wasn’t this year, it would become next year. And he stepped up to the role. He didn’t care what the score was between the two teams. James had back-to-back 41 points games, with one of his All-Star teammates Kyrie Irving also scoring 41 in Game 6. In Game 7, Cleveland went all-out. They were willing to do whatever it took to win, and Golden State wasn’t. He had really stopped Golden State’s best player, Stephen Curry, blocking him a total of 6 times in the series. He had an incredible chasedown block on Andre Iguodala in the 4th in Game 7, and Kyrie also hit a clutch 3 on Curry with only about a minute left to give Cleveland a 3 point lead. To finish the Game, LeBron drew a foul and made a free-throw as Cleveland won 93-89. James became the 3rd player to record a triple-double in Game 7 of the Finals. Cleveland became the 1st team ever to come back from a 3-1 deficit in the Finals, and LeBron became the 1st player in NBA history to lead both teams in all 5 categories for the series. Cleveland also ended a 52 year sports drought, with no team winning for the city in the past 52 years.