LeBron James

Childhood

• Raised by a single mother, Gloria James

• She was never able to land a steady job

• The two moved from apartment to apartment, often in bad neighborhoods

• Showed tremendous instincts for basketball at a young age

Freshman Year

• Went to St. Vincent- St. Mary High School

• He was starting point guard for his team

• Led his team to a 27-0 season

• He helped his basketball team in 2000 to the Division 3 State Championships as a freshman

Sophomore Year

• He averaged 27.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 4 steals

• He was named Ohio’s “Mr. Basketball”

• He was selected to the USA Today All-USA First Team

• He also got First-Team All State being a wide receiver

• This was his last year of football because he wanted to

focus more on basketball

Junior Year

• Averaged 29.7 points and 8.4 rebounds

• named Mr. Basketball Ohio, earned a spot on All-USA First Team, and was named the 2001-02 Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the year

• Appeared on covers of Sports Illustrated and ESPN the magazine

Senior Year

• Led his team to a 3rd state title

• Named Mr. Basketball of Ohio, and to the All-USA First Team, got MVP at the 2003 McDonald’s All-American Team, also named MVP in the Roundball Classic and the Jordan Capital Classic

Rookie Year-Picked first overall in the 2003 draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers

- He averaged 20.9 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.5 rebounds

-He received rookie of the year

Bike-a-thon

• Recognizes and rewards children who have achieved academic success and improved their physical fitness.

• Money from the event is donated to the Akron Area YMCA and the Akron Urban League.

HALO Awards

• HALO stands for helping and leading others.

• LeBron James presented Darius Snow with a HALO Award.

• Darius grew up in one of the most violent neighborhoods in the country, in Atlanta. He was abandoned as a kid.

-He was the first in his family to graduate high school and go to college.- He also teaches kids in his neighborhood step team. - LeBron takes him to a movie premiere, a community basketball event, and a bike-a-thon.

Career

• Averages 27.7 points per game, 6.6 assists, and 7.0 rebounds