LeBron James became a household name during his high school days. Having recorded 28 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 6 assists as a junior, James was being regarded as the greatest high school prospect ever. By the time he was a senior, some of the largest brands in the world wanted to associate themselves with Bron. However, since the teenager wasn’t allowed to generate income from his image, his high school – St. Vincent-St. Mary’s – benefitted tremendously. According to an ESPN story, the phenom was responsible for bringing in as much as $298,000 in revenue for the Akron-based school. Despite bringing in such hefty amounts, Gloria James was stumped when her son was being charged $40 for parking.
Advertisement
LeBron James was putting up a terrific senior year campaign. While leading his team to a 26-1 record, the Forward erupted for 29.2 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game. Expected to be the #1 pick of the upcoming 2003 Draft, James was getting approached by some of the biggest shoe brands in the world – Nike, Adidas, and Reebok. LBJ missed his prom to attend the meeting with Adidas and ended up rejecting their $60,000,000 offer. Despite Reebok offering a whopping $115,000,000 deal, the future Cleveland Cavaliers star opted for the $87,000,000 that Nike offered.
LeBron James brought $298,000 in revenue for his high school but still had to pay $40 for parking
LeBron James was one of the most talked about and hyped athletes across the nation as a senior in high school. Thanks to Bron’s dominance, all of St. Vincent-St. Mary’s games were being nationally televised by ESPN.
Despite featuring on some of the most prestigious sports magazine covers, Bron didn’t receive any superstar treatment in school. Even though he brought in $298,000 in revenue, LeBron had to pay $40 for parking at St. Vincent-St. Mary’s. As seen in the excerpt from ESPN’s The Path To Greatness article, Gloria James was livid at the school for the same.
“James notches his second major magazine cover, with ESPN The Magazine putting him on the front of its NEXT issue. In the magazine story, James’ mother says she is upset that LeBron, who helps generate $298,000 in revenue for St. Vincent-St. Mary’s in the 2001-02 season, is treated like every other student. ‘Who paid for that sound system?’ she says. ‘Bron did. And do you know they want him to pay almost $40 a year to park at school?'”
To prevent other students’ parents from getting enraged at the partial treatment, the school management did a great job of treating Jamess equally. Of course, being treated as a regular student like any other peer is one of the huge reasons behind the Los Angeles Lakers superstar being as humble as he is.
Bron was not liked by his Cleveland Cavaliers teammates
LeBron James was expected to turn around the Cleveland Cavaliers’ fortunes as soon as he set foot on the NBA hardwood. With all the media attention that the rookie was receiving, the hype was bound to annoy some of the existing players on the roster. The likes of Carlos Boozer, Smush Parker, and Darius Miles often expressed their honest feelings toward the prodigious young talent.
As seen in the video uploaded by Bleacher Report, LBJ’s future teammates displayed no confidence. However, the 6-foot-9 Forward did manage to prove his haters wrong. Averaging 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.9 assists per game, LeBron won the 2004 Rookie of the Year honor.
