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      The Redemption of the King: LeBron James Returns to Cleveland!

      Copyright © 2015 Vince McKee

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, or by any means electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the copyright holder, except for brief quotations used in reviews.

      For further information, please contact the publisher:

      CLERISY PRESS

      An imprint of Keen Communications, LLC

      306 Greenup St.

      Covington, KY 41011

      clerisypress.com

      Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

      McKee, Vince.

      The redemption of the King : LeBron James returns to Cleveland / by Vince McKee.

      pages cm

      Summary: “LeBron James is back in Cleveland’s court, and the city is on fire as its chosen one has decided to come home. His highly publicized, and equally highly emotional, return to Cleveland reveals his penultimate goal: to bring a championship back to northeast Ohio where he grew up. Now, for the first time ever, the full story is told from the beginning as author Vince McKee covers James’s entire journey in every detail both on and off the court—from the start of his career with the Cavaliers in Cleveland to his departure to Miami, his time with the Heat, and finally, the much debated and highly anticipated return of the “King.” Although pro basketball is an international juggernaut in terms of dollars, this story revolves more around hometown pride and character than money or celebrity.” — Provided by publisher.

      ISBN 978-1-57860-571-2 (paperback) — ISBN 1-57860-571-7 () —

      eISBN 0 978-1-57860-572-9

      1. James, LeBron. 2. Basketball players—United States—Biography. 3. Cleveland Cavaliers (Basketball team) 4. Basketball—Ohio—Cleveland. I. Title.

      GV884.J36M45 2015

      796.323092—dc23

      [B]

      2014047451

      Distributed by Publishers Group West

      Printed in the United States of America

      First edition, first printing

      Editor: Vanessa Lynn Rusch

      Cover design: Scott McGrew

      Text design: Annie Long

      Front-cover photo: © Keith Allison / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA 3.0

      Back-cover photo: © Vince McKee

      Copyeditor: Emily C. Beaumont

      Indexer: Rich Carlson

      This book is dedicated to my brother, Don, and his wife, Abbie.

      You have both always been my number-one fans

      and a major reason I never gave up. I love you both!

      This book is also dedicated to Braylon and Bret—

      May your souls forever rest in peace,

      as heaven has its two newest and most beautiful angels.

      Contents

       ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

       INTRODUCTION

       1. The Chosen One

       2. The Next Level

       3. Beating Detroit and the NBA Finals

       4. Acquiring Talent for LeBron

       5. The Ascension

       6. Taking His Talents to South Beach

       7. “Not One”

       8. The Champion

       9. The Spurs

       10. Redemption

       EPILOGUE

       APPENDIX 1: LeBron’s 10 Greatest Games of All Time

       APPENDIX 2: LeBron James vs. the Greatest Players of All Time

       REFERENCES

       PREVIEW: Cleveland’s Finest

       ABOUT THE AUTHOR

      Acknowledgments

      I want to thank first my incredible wife, Emily, and our adorable daughter, Maggie, for giving me the time and space to do this project on such a short notice, after I had planned on taking some time off. I would like to thank the hardworking and loyal fans of Cleveland, who never gave up hope. I would also like to thank my parents, Don and Maria McKee, for a lifetime of support; my wife’s parents, Bob and Deborah Lamb, for always believing in me and making me feel so welcome in their family; Kenny Roda, Ken Carman, and Jerry Mires for dropping everything at a moment’s notice for some quick interviews; and Jim Friguglietti for his continued guidance. Most importantly, I want to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, as it is through His light that all work is done.

images

      The Cavaliers became an NBA franchise in 1970 under owner Nick Mileti.

      Photo: Sam Bourquin

      Introduction

      LeBron James is regarded by many as the greatest player in the history of high school basketball and is seen as having the potential to surpass Michael Jordan as the game’s greatest player of all time. In the early 2000s, because of his incoming talent, most NBA experts considered LeBron to be better than 75 percent of the then-current league’s talent before he played even one game. So it was no surprise when he forfeited his college eligibility and declared he would enter the 2003 NBA draft. For the Cavaliers, the chance to select LeBron as their first overall pick signaled a rebirth for the franchise, as well as for the city of Cleveland.

      On May 22, 2003, after five years of no luck, Cleveland finally turned around their fate when they won the NBA draft lottery. The reason why the number-one pick was so crucial was that LeBron would be entering the draft. The Cavaliers were tied with the Denver Nuggets for the highest chance of winning the pick. It almost seemed like a dream come true for Cleveland fans, who, for so many years prior, had received every bad bounce

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