NBA superstar LeBron James will step into his 20th season in NBA at 38 years of age. Ever since he stepped into the league, he has been the face of it. Coming straight out of high school, he started dominating his opponents as soon as he joined the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was a national sensation even when he was in school. James has been a superstar ever since he started playing basketball. His love for the game and skills were evident at a very early age. People closer to him knew he was destined for greatness.

As he developed into a well-rounded player, his superstardom grew every day. In 2002, when he was 17 and only a junior in high school, James made the cover of ‘Sports Illustrated’ as “The Chosen One.” Many fans and analysts said that he would be the heir to the throne that would be left vacant by all-time great Michael Jordan.

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The Bulls legend was still playing at the time for the Washington Wizards during his second come back from retirement. A young James, however, did not crumble under the huge expectation and spotlight. Instead, he wore it like a badge, literally, getting a “Chosen 1” tattoo.

LeBron James, the chosen one

Even years before the Cleveland Cavaliers drafted LeBron James, his reputation began to grow in the organization. At the time, Jim Paxson was the general manager of the Cavaliers. He once disclosed that he first saw James play when he was a sophomore and stated he could have easily scored 50 or 60 points, however, chose to be unselfish.

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“He just kind of had that part figured out, and you normally don’t see that with players that are great athletes, because if they can score 50, or 60, they’re going to go score 50 or 60. But LeBron was unselfish. He was athletic like [Michael] Jordan, and had the size and feel like Magic Johnson,” Paxson said.

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In 2002, John Lucas was a first-year head coach for the Cavaliers. On May 22, 2002, Lucas invited LeBron James to work out along with several local college players and some free agents. And the high school junior gave a jaw-dropping performance. However, his participation violated league rules.

So the league suspended head coach Lucas for two games and fined him  $250,000 and fined the Cavaliers $150,000. One year later, the Cavaliers selected James as the first pick in the NBA draft. He had a roller-coaster relationship with the fans of Cleveland. However, he gave them their first-ever NBA title in 2016 during his second stint with the club.