Cleveland Cavaliers (2003–2010) LeBron James

1 cleveland cavaliers (2003–2010)

1.1 rookie season (2003–2004)
1.2 rise superstardom (2004–2008)
1.3 first mvp tenure (2008–2010)

cleveland cavaliers (2003–2010)
rookie season (2003–2004)

james picks dribble against washington wizards in november 2006.

james selected home team, cleveland cavaliers, first overall pick of 2003 nba draft. in first regular season game, scored 25 points against sacramento kings, setting nba record points scored prep-to-pro player in debut performance. @ conclusion of season, named nba rookie of year, finishing averages of 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, , 5.9 assists per game. became first cavalier receive honor , third player in nba history average @ least 20 points, 5 rebounds, , 5 assists per game rookie. cavaliers finished season 35–47, failing make playoffs despite 18-game improvement on previous year.

rise superstardom (2004–2008)

james earned first nba all-star game selection in 2004–05, contributing 13 points, 8 rebounds, , 6 assists in winning effort eastern conference. around league, teams took note of rapid development, denver nuggets coach george karl telling sports illustrated, s weird talking 20-year-old kid being great player, great player ... s exception every rule. on march 20, james scored 56 points against toronto raptors, setting cleveland s new single-game points record. final averages of 27.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, 7.2 assists, , 2.2 steals per game, named first all-nba team. despite 30–20 record start year, cavaliers again failed make playoffs, finishing season 42–40.

at 2006 all-star game, james led east victory 29 points , named nba all-star game valuable player. behind final season averages of 31.4 points, 7 rebounds, , 6.6 assists per game, finished second in overall nba valuable player award voting steve nash. under james s leadership, cavaliers qualified playoffs first time since 1998. in postseason debut, james recorded triple-double in winning effort versus washington wizards. in game 3 of series, made first game-winning shot of career, making in game 5. cleveland go on defeat wizards before being ousted detroit pistons in second round.

james engages in pre-game ritual of tossing crushed chalk air in march 2008. routine retired after 2011.

in 2006–07, james s averages declined 27.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 6 assists, , 1.6 steals per game. analysts attributed fall regression in passing skills , shot selection, stemming lack of effort , focus. cavaliers finished season 50 wins second consecutive year , entered playoffs east s second seed. in game 5 of conference finals, james notched 48 points 9 rebounds , 7 assists, scoring 29 of cleveland s last 30 points, including game-winning layup 2 seconds left, against pistons. after game, play-by-play announcer marv albert called performance 1 of greatest moments in postseason history , color commentator steve kerr described jordan-esque . in 2012, espn ranked performance fourth greatest in modern nba playoff history. cavaliers went on win game 6 , claim first-ever eastern conference championship, earning them matchup san antonio spurs in nba finals. during championship round, james struggled, averaging 22 points, 7.0 rebounds, , 6.8 assists per game on 35.6 percent shooting, , cleveland eliminated in sweep.

in february of 2007–08 season, james named all-star game mvp second time behind 27-point, 8-rebound, , 9-assist performance. on march 21, moved past brad daugherty cavaliers all-time leading scorer in game against raptors, doing in on 100 less games daugherty. 30 points per game highest in league, representing first scoring title. despite individual accomplishments, cleveland s record fell year before 45–37. seeded fourth in east entering playoffs, cavaliers defeated wizards in first round third consecutive season before being eliminated in 7 games eventual-champion boston celtics in next round. during decisive seventh game in boston, james scored 45 points , paul pierce scored 41 in game associated press described shootout .

first mvp tenure (2008–2010)

james , deshawn stevenson in april 2008. 2 had short feud after stevenson called james overrated .

at conclusion of 2008–09 season, james finished second in nba defensive player of year voting , made first nba all-defensive team, posting 23 chase-down blocks , career-high 93 total blocks. became fourth postmerger player lead team in points, rebounds, assists, steals, , blocks in single season. behind play , acquisition of all-star guard mo williams, cleveland went franchise record 66–16 , fell 1 game short of matching best home record in league history. final averages of 28.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, 7.2 assists, 1.7 steals, , 1.2 blocks per game, james became first cavalier win mvp award. reflecting on james s performance espn, john hollinger later wrote, s having arguably greatest individual season in history, , s time gave him due it.

in playoffs, cleveland swept pistons , atlanta hawks earn matchup orlando magic in conference finals. in game 1 of series, james scored 49 points on 66 percent shooting in losing effort cavaliers. in game 2, hit game-winner tie series @ 1–1. cleveland lose series in 6 games, , following loss in game 6, james left floor without shaking hands opponents, act many media members viewed unsportsmanlike. series, averaged 38.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, , 8 assists per game, finishing postseason career playoff-high 35.3 points per game.

in february of 2009–10 season, james forced temporary point guard role following series of injuries cavaliers backcourt. behind leadership, cleveland lost no momentum, finishing year best record in league second consecutive season. due in part increased minutes cavaliers primary ball handler, james increased statistical production, averaging 29.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 8.6 assists, 1.6 steals, , 1 block per game on 50 percent shooting en route mvp award. open playoffs, cleveland advanced past bulls earn matchup celtics in second round. james heavily criticized not playing in game 5 of series, shooting 20 percent on 14 shots , scoring 15 points. team suffered worst loss in franchise history, , @ conclusion of game, james walked off court smattering of boos cleveland s home crowd. cavaliers officially eliminated postseason in game 6, james posting 27 points, 19 rebounds, 10 assists, , 9 turnovers in losing effort.