James believes Cavs have golden opportunity

bbwchingy0007 · Sep 30, 2008

Cleveland Plain Dealer said:

By all accounts, LeBron James had a pretty good season last year.

He became the Cavaliers all-time leading scorer and the only Cav to lead the league in scoring with 30 points per game. He was the MVP of the All-Star Game and made the all-NBA team. Then he went to the Beijing Olympics and led the U.S. Redeem Team to a gold medal, avenging its bronze-medal finish in Athens, Greece, in 2004.

So, how much better does he think he is heading into this season?

"Me, as an individual, I know I've improved, I think five times [better] than I was in Game 7 of the Boston series," James said during the Cavaliers media day on Monday at Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Five times better? That's a scary thought for the rest of the NBA. But the Cavaliers captain put the rest of the league on notice.

"As a leader, I think I can lead these guys to a championship," James said. "We really believe that. It's not about making the playoffs any more for our team. It's about winning a championship."

After his team's heartbreaking loss to the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, James insisted the Cavs had to get better. General Manager Danny Ferry went out and drafted forward J.J. Hickson, traded for guard Mo Williams, re-signed restricted free-agent guards Daniel Gibson and Delonte West, and brought in veteran center Lorenzen Wright.

"I'm really happy," James said in his first extended comments to local reporters since the end of last season. "They did a great job of going out and getting players who could help win a championship.

"This is the best team we've had since I've been here, especially to start off the season. I see the talent from 1 to 14. From 1 to 14, everybody can contribute."

Training camp starts in earnest with two-a-day practices today. How the newcomers will fit in has yet to be determined. Who starts where and who plays how much will sort itself out. James, obviously, will be the key, and he thinks his Olympic experience was invaluable to his development -- no matter how tiring it was.

"It was a tough challenge for me to go out and say I'm going to lead 11 of the best guys in the world," he said of his All-Star teammates. "If you can lead 11 of the best guys in the world, you can lead anybody. So I improved more as a leader. Of course my game improved. When you go against these guys every day, your game is going to elevate.

"I wish I could have gotten more rest. But I traded rest for representing my country, winning a gold medal and doing it on the biggest stage in the world. I can take a few hours of not sleeping for winning a gold medal." Happy camper: Although the national media insists James already has decided to opt out of the final year of his contract and head for New York or New Jersey, James begs to differ.

"I never gave an indication I was leaving Cleveland," he said. "I never gave any indication I didn't like being here. Every time I'm asked that question, [I answer] I love being here, I love playing in front of these fans. My family's here. I grew up 30 miles away from here. I never gave any indication I did not like playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers. I like the Yankees and Cowboys, but it has nothing to do with the Cavaliers." Staying home: Center Zydrunas Ilgauskas was disappointed he was unable to play for Lithuania in the Olympics when insurance issues could not be resolved. As it turned out, it probably was a good thing.

"The postseason physical revealed a ruptured disc in my back," he said. "I was struggling at the end of last season. I was in a lot of pain. I went to Canada and spent time in Vancouver with a back therapist just trying to get better.

"It took me completely off basketball. I didn't touch a basketball until three weeks ago. More than anything, I just wanted to give my body a chance to rest."

Forward Anderson Varejao's sprained ankle prevented him from playing for Brazil's national team as it tried to qualify for the Olympics.

"Everyone wants to play in the Olympics, and I'm no different," Varejao said. He said the ankle still swells after he runs. "It was tough for me. What was toughest for me is that the media in Brazil didn't know what was going on. I don't know why. They were acting like I didn't want to play for the team."

Varejao, wearing a T-shirt that read "I'm with stupid," got a lot of laughs Monday by sidling up to teammates -- including James -- who were having their pictures taken. Thanks, but no thanks: Williams had season tickets to the Milwaukee Brewers, who advanced to the playoffs for the first time since 1982. He recently received his tickets for the first round. "I had to send them an e-mail saying 'I'm not a Brewers fan anymore,' " he said, laughing.
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bbwchingy0007 · Sep 30, 2008

http://videos.cleveland.com/plain-dealer/2008/09/lebron_and_company_at_the_cava.html

a link to a video

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bbwchingy0007 · Sep 30, 2008

Can't really expect LeBron to say anything else; he and the rest of the guys are always going to say they have a great shot this year. It's true: they do, but they have to say it. (I think you can see what I'm trying to say).

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James believes Cavs have golden opportunity

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