<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">SACRAMENTO, CALIF. - Before this story begins, let's get this part out of the way so nothing can be misconstrued. Lounging after practice Monday at Arco Arena, LeBron James again stated his long-term plans. ``I can't wait until I re-up next year,'' James said, referring to next August when he can sign a five-year contract extension with the Cavaliers. ``Then I can get the max.'' That sounds just as firm as his statements before the start of the season when he expressed his extreme support for the organization. Of course, oral assurances in Dec. 2005 aren't binding, but James continues to make his point loud and clear. If there's a franchise, though, besides the Cavs that James favors -- despite what media in New York and Los Angeles have assumed eagerly in the past -- it just might be the Sacramento Kings, whom the Cavs face tonight to close their West Coast swing. James and his family have become quite friendly with the owners of the Kings, Joe and Gavin Maloof. The relationship goes back two years to before James' rookie year, when he first met them. The Maloofs, who have a long history in the NBA, yet, hold the reputation as the most stylish of the new crop of young owners, treated James like he was a Kings player and not a member of the opposition. ``They've treated us very well,'' James said. ``You have to respect a class act like those two guys.'' The Maloofs were welcoming James when he shot his first Nike commercial in September before his rookie season at Arco Arena. Then, when James played his first game in the building, the Maloofs openly considered it as a honor and took care of James' every wish for the game. Since, he and his family have been welcomed guests at Kings games and at the Palms hotel in Las Vegas, which the Maloof family owns. Last season, James' mother, Gloria, sat with the Maloofs in their courtside seats when the Cavs came to town. ``I'm happy to know them,'' James said. ``They're a good group of guys.''</div> Source
