Home>News Center>Sports
             
     

    James easily wins NBA Rookie of the Year
    (Agencies)
    Updated: 2004-04-21 09:31

    More than 45 minutes late to a news conference, LeBron James was one teen who didn't need an excuse.

    He's exhausted.

    "They had to drag me out bed to put this suit on," James said Tuesday, when he won the NBA Rookie of the Year award. "I didn't want to get out. I thought I was going to practice when they woke me up this morning."


    LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers gestures toward his coach Paul Silas during a news conference after the NBA picked him for the Rookie of the Year award at Gund Arena April 20, 2004. [Reuters]
    Hey, saving the Cleveland Cavaliers is hard work, and the 19-year-old James put the final touch on a remarkable season by becoming the rookie award's youngest recipient.

    "I knew I would make an impact this year," said James, who easily beat Denver's Carmelo Anthony, also 19. "And I guess I did."

    The 6-foot-8 guard made the jump from preps to pros look easy, somehow living up to the unprecedented hype. The No. 1 overall draft pick did more than just post jaw-dropping statistics night after night: He transformed Gund Arena into a hot spot, and he gave Cleveland fans reason to hope.

    "He proved to all of us that he is up for a challenge. He exceeded all of our expectations and just kept raising the bar," Cavaliers owner Gordon Gund said.

    James received 508 points, including 78 of a possible 118 first-place votes, to become the first Cleveland rookie honored.

    Anthony, who left Syracuse after leading it to an NCAA championship as a freshman, finished with 430 points, including the other 40 first-place votes.

    "People are going to think what they want to think," Anthony said. "I don't really know what else I could have done."

    Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat was third with 117 points in balloting by sports writers and broadcasters. Players received 5 points for a first-place vote, 3 for second and 1 for third.


    Cleveland Cavaliers' head coach Paul Silas reacts after a comment made by LeBron James during a press conference at the Gund Arena, April 20, 2004.[Reuters]
    "I thought it could go either way," said James, who praised Anthony for having a phenomenal season. "I thought it could be a split decision."

    In any other year, Anthony probably would have won the award for statistics similar to James' and helping the Nuggets go from 17 victories to the playoffs.

    But this season belonged to James, from his 25-point, nine-rebound, six-assist NBA debut at Sacramento through his resounding windmill dunk to close his season at Madison Square Garden.

    James followed Amare Stoudemire of the Phoenix Suns as the second straight rookie honored after turning pro directly from high school.

    But that's where the similarities end.

    No player entered the league to as much fanfare as James. And the Akron native delivered on the court, while his wine-and-gold No. 23 jersey led NBA sales and his image was marketed from coast to coast.

    James averaged 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists, joining Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan as the only NBA rookies to average at least 20-5-5.

    "He just has it. It's all his attitude," Cavaliers coach Paul Silas said. "He has a knack for doing and saying the right thing and not in an antagonistic way. That's just not in him. He's humble, and he's about winning more than anything."

    Like any rookie, James had his share of struggles while adjusting to the pros. He learned to accept the punishment before dishing out some of his own.

    On March 27, he scored 41 points against New Jersey to become the youngest player in league history to break 40. He scored more than 30 points 13 times, and made countless moves that defied description.

    "They try to take away your manhood in this league, and they couldn't get mine," said James, who was to receive his trophy Tuesday night at the NBA store in New York. "I could have averaged around 25 points if I could have gotten a lot of calls."

    A year after going 17-65, the Cavs went 35-47 and finished ninth in the Eastern Conference, one spot out of the playoffs. James also helped home attendance rise from 11,497 to 18,288 - the highest increase ever for a team that didn't move into a new building.

    Plenty of those new fans came to see James, who actually considers football his first love.

    He joked Tuesday that he just might have made the right choice by dropping football for good a few years back. Especially now that he's seen his friend, Maurice Clarett, go to court in an effort to enter the NFL early.

    "I could have made it to the NFL," James said. "But I probably would have come in with Maurice and been sent back to college."

     
      Today's Top News     Top Sports News
     

    Leaders support nuclear weapon free peninsula

     

       
     

    Tough action to wipe out `killer' milk powder

     

       
     

    Forced demolitions blur rights

     

       
     

    China opposes Vietnamese islands tour

     

       
     

    Mubarak: Arabs hate US more than ever

     

       
     

    Blasts rip Iraq police stations, kill 58

     

       
      Kings roll past Mavericks 83-79 in Game 2
       
      James easily wins NBA Rookie of the Year
       
      N.J. Nets top banged-up Knicks 99-81
       
      Maradona's condition remains 'delicate'
       
      Man United: Old Trafford not a terrorist target
       
      76ers hire Jim O'Brien as new coach
       
     
      Go to Another Section  
     
     
      Story Tools  
       
    Advertisement
             
    日本中文字幕在线电影| 国产成人精品无码片区在线观看| 日韩人妻无码精品久久免费一| 亚洲av中文无码乱人伦在线r▽| 无码无套少妇毛多18PXXXX| 暖暖日本免费中文字幕| 99无码熟妇丰满人妻啪啪| 亚洲精品无码MV在线观看| 在线中文字幕一区| 亚洲精品无码专区2| 国产精品va无码一区二区 | 亚洲午夜无码片在线观看影院猛| 亚洲国产精品无码久久98| 亚洲欧美日韩中文字幕二区 | 久久超乳爆乳中文字幕| AV成人午夜无码一区二区| 无码精品人妻一区二区三区漫画| 中文字幕51日韩视频| 最好看的中文字幕最经典的中文字幕视频 | 国产免费无码AV片在线观看不卡| 无码国产精品一区二区免费| 99久久超碰中文字幕伊人| 中文字幕无码一区二区三区本日 | 久久人妻少妇嫩草AV无码蜜桃| 亚洲av无码不卡| 亚洲AV无码国产在丝袜线观看| 亚洲中文久久精品无码| 日韩人妻无码精品专区| 欧美日韩中文字幕在线| 玖玖资源站中文字幕在线| 天堂а√在线地址中文在线| 中文字幕免费视频一| 日日麻批免费40分钟无码| 中文字幕精品视频| 日韩精品一区二区三区中文字幕| 欧美乱人伦人妻中文字幕| 亚洲韩国—中文字幕| 91天日语中文字幕在线观看| 亚洲成A人片在线观看中文| 亚洲国产中文字幕在线观看| 久久精品中文无码资源站|