LeBron Raymone James (born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). James, commonly nicknamed "King James," and sometimes referred to as "The L-Train" by Austin Carr, was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA star while still in high school at St. Vincent - St. Mary High School, and was named Ohio's "Mr. Basketball" three times. At the age of 18, he was selected with the first overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Cavaliers and signed an unprecedented US$90 million shoe contract with Nike before his NBA debut. He has since set numerous youngest player records. In his first season, he received the NBA Rookie of the Year Award and in the following four seasons received All-NBA and All-Star honors. He has led the Cavaliers to consecutive playoff appearances in 2006, 2007, and 2008; in 2007, the team advanced to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1992 and the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history.
James is listed as a small forward, but often handles the ball and runs the Cavalier's offense as a point guard would. James was a member of the United States men's national basketball team that won the bronze medal in the 2004 Olympics in Athens and he finished second in the league Most Valuable Player balloting in 2006.