RKMBs Forums .::Robegories::. Sports and Wrestling LeBron James in trouble over clothing?

First it was LeBron James' Hummer. Now, it's his clothes.

Just a few days after James was cleared of any wrongdoing for accepting a sports utility vehicle as a gift, Ohio high school officials are reviewing a report he received complimentary clothing.

Last Saturday, James, the nation's top high school player, was apparently given two free "throwback" jerseys worth $845 at a local clothing store. The story was first reported by The Plain Dealer.

Ohio High School Athletic Association bylaws state that an athlete forfeits his or her amateur status by "capitalizing on athletic fame by receiving money or gifts of monetary value."

OHSAA commissioner Clair Muscaro is aware of the report "and is reviewing it," spokesman Bob Goldring said.

At the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards on Thursday night, James didn't have much to say about the latest controversy.

"I'll let my family handle that," said James, honored as Cleveland's high school athlete of the year. "I'm just doing my thing on the court."

James arrived late to the banquet and left early, before Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown had a chance to meet the 18-year-old superstar.

"I wanted to meet him," Brown said. "He's hot right now. But he'd probably be like, 'Jim Brown Who'. LeBron has got it going on."

On Monday, Muscaro ruled that James, a senior at St. Vincent-St. Mary, would not lose his eligibility for accepting a custom-made Hummer H2 vehicle -- valued at over $50,000 -- as an 18th birthday gift from his mother. Gloria James provided loan information to support her purchase.

After attending a local high school game last weekend, James and some friends visited the clothing store "Next," where he picked out two jerseys -- one of Chicago Bears Hall of Famer Gale Sayers, the other of Washington Bullets center Wes Unseld.

The Sayers jersey costs $395; the Unseld jersey, $450.

Store manager Derrick Craig said the store's owner gave the jerseys to James for free.

"We get celebrities in here all the time," said Craig, who would not identify the owner. "They spend a lot of money and sometimes you just got to give them some love."

Goldring said OHSAA rules stipulate that athletes can't receive any kind of apparel worth more than $100.

And in the case of a school having a contract with an apparel company -- James' school has one with adidas -- any apparel worth more than $100 is considered school-issued and must be returned by the athlete at the end of the season.

Attorney Fred Nance, who represented James and his family, was not immediately available for comment Thursday.

y'know...

i think i really hope that this kid is a big bust in the nba, cuz im already sick of hearing about him.

As long as he gets a good coach and he's patient, he's gonna explode. Kid's got better moves than Kobe when he was at Lower Marion. And believe me, Kobe was a thing of beauty to watch at that age.

i dunno...

i just find it so hard to believe that they know he's gonna be so great in the pros. there are a lotta great kids in high school that wilt at the college level.

what kinda competition is lebron currently facing? high school kids. can you accurately predict how well he'll do against guys 10 experience-filled years his senior?

i've seen some highlight reels of his games and, sure, he's great. but... they're as entertaining and skill-filled as most high school basketball games (i.e; not much).

No, Rob, nothing about what LeBron James can do resembles a normal high schooler's game. Nothing. I've seen highlights of tons of current/past NBAers when they were in high school, like Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, Jerry Stackhouse, Vince Carter, Sean Elliot, Eddy Curry, etc.

The main thing that seperates LeBron James isn't his height, his athleticism or his shooting ability. It's his passing. He has fantastic court awareness, and you have to really watch him play to see that, because it's not something as obvious as a between the legs dunk or a buncha 3's.

That all being said, I do think the media is placing incredibly unfair expectations on LeBron's shoulders. It's clear that LeBron has the tools and the mindset to become a fantastic player, but it's not a certainty. While I expect him to be an immediate impact player(something that KG, Kobe, and most of the other high school NBAers weren't, a lone exception being Amare Stoudemire), it will still take a few years for him to develop his body a little more, and adjust to the physical and mental stresses of the NBA lifestyle, not to mention learning to play with new teammates. At that point, barring injury, he could take off.

huh.

i guess i didnt see the games then. ...weird...

anyway....

no high school player should be discussed this heavily on the ny posts' sports section or espn.com's homepage. it really doesnt matter how good he is, even if yer just using the (logical!) reasoning that its unfair to a 17 year old.

further... im all for the idea of "enforcing" (not literally) atleast 2 years of college play. if, for any reason, to build experience and skill.

and theeeen....

James ruled ineligible, plans to appeal decision

CLEVELAND -- High school basketball star LeBron James was ruled ineligible to play for the rest of the season because he accepted free clothes.

The decision Friday by the Ohio High School Athletic Association comes four days after James, a senior at St. Vincent-St. Mary, was cleared for accepting a $50,000 sport utility vehicle as a gift from his mother.

A source close to James told ESPN.com that James would appeal the decision.

Last Saturday, James was given two retro sports jerseys from a clothing store. The jerseys, honoring former Chicago Bears running back Gale Sayers and former Washington Bullets center Wes Unseld, cost a combined $845.

James' school must forfeit Sunday's game, the association said in a news release.

The 6-foot-8 James is considered the best high school player in the country and is expected to be the top player selected in June's NBA draft.

Ohio High School Athletic Association bylaws state that an athlete forfeits his or her amateur status by "capitalizing on athletic fame by receiving money or gifts of monetary value."

More specifically, the OHSAA 2002-03 Athletic Eligibility Information Bulletin states in part that, "You may receive an award or merchandise as a result of your participation in school or non-school competition from any source, provided the value does not exceed $100 per award."

As for what lies ahead beyond high school, nothing really has changed for James. Under NBA rules, he cannot become a free agent and start his pro career early. In order to become a free agent, an athlete must have been eligible for one NBA draft. James has not been eligible for an NBA draft and does not become eligible for the upcoming June 25 draft until his high school senior class graduates in early June.

While James was not planning on playing college basketball, an NCAA official said Friday that James was not eligible even before the jersey infraction.

Citing extra benefits the NCAA says James received regarding lodging and transportation at Nike's summer camp as well as other infractions, an NCAA official said, "LeBron James would not have been certified at any institution in the NCAA. He would have been initially ineligible."

James refused to comment about the jerseys Thursday night at the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards; he was honored as the area's top high school athlete for the second straight year. He did allude to "all the controversy that's going on with me'' during his acceptance speech.

"I'd like to thank my teammates for helping me through all this,'' he said. "It will be in the paper, but remember, I'm on the honor roll with a 3.5 grade-point average.''

Earlier this month, James drew attention in Akron by driving around a new custom-made Hummer H2, which he received as a present for his 18th birthday. His mother, Gloria James, provided loan information to prove she had purchased the vehicle.

On Monday, OHSAA commissioner Clair Muscaro ruled that James would not lose his eligibility for accepting the vehicle.

Muscaro said he asked school administrators at St. Vincent-St. Mary on Friday for a chance to speak with James.

"But LeBron did not want to speak with me,'' Muscaro said, adding that James is the first athlete he has declared ineligible in his 14 years as commissioner.

"I think this sends a message that we are all about fairness,'' Muscaro said. "LeBron is being treated like any one of the thousands of student-athletes in Ohio.''

Muscaro said his ruling addressed only the issue of James receiving the two jerseys.

"Naturally, LeBron is talented and he's noted nationally and internationally, but as far as this association is concerned, we will treat him the same as all our other athletes.''

The Sayers jersey costs $395; the Unseld jersey, $450.

Store manager Derrick Craig said the store's owner gave the jerseys to James for free.

"We get celebrities in here all the time," said Craig, who would not identify the owner. "They spend a lot of money and sometimes you just got to give them some love."

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

I just really enjoy the headline Lebron James gets hummer from his mom...

Ah, family love...

Oh hell,,, give him a break. He's on his way to the NBA. Which stands for "Nothing But Arrested"!!!!!! :)

Problem he can't hit an NBA 3 point shot the way he needs to. Two weeks ago he had trouble shooting over a 5'11" defender. Yep, he's gonna rock the NBA. Maybe. Time will tell.

Was it 12? I thought it was 11. Regardless, I think he silenced all the "he can't shoot" critics with that game.

I agree that LeBron needs to learn to grow up a little if he's going to play professionally. He lacks the discipline Kobe and KG had at that age. But in all fairness he's probably way more civil than Moses Malone was.

Apparently, he already HAD the Unsled jersey that he was given, which makes it even more incorrigable that he would do this.

But I also think that if he returns the gifts (which he did), he should be allowed to play. It doesn't make sense to me that if they aren't in his posession anymore, he should still be reprimanded.

It's a stupid rule.

Yeah, I agree, it seems kinda silly, but I can see their point. Where do you draw the line? A couple jerseys? An agent buys you a suit? A shoe company gives you a brand new wardrobe? What if an agent gave him a loan based on future earnings? Maybe fifty grand to go get a hummer ( )? You can't really draw a line and say "This is ok, but this isn't." so you tell them it's all wrong. It's the best way of doing it...

It's not like he was an innocent victim in all this. He knew the consequences, he knew it was wrong. He dodged a huge bullet a few weeks back with his mom securing the loan for the SUV. What the hell was he thinking?!?!?

Kid sounds like a real idiot to me...

basketball players arent noted for their intelligence.....

He's young and that gives him the right to be damn stupid in my book. He's going from nothing to millions. If he blows out a knee he still has money. Then agin I think his mom got him the wrong kind of hummer if you can smell what I'm cook'n fellas. What ever happend to that Stareena story? Just wonering......

I think, to bypass the rules, they gave it to the school, not directly to Lebron...

Lebron, and all his supposed "advisors" should have known after all the shit that got stirred up over the Hummer, that they would be watching his every step. It's his own damn fault...

As far as the maturity levels for Kobe and Kev go, I will give Lebron one thing, and that's that they never had the kind of scrutiny that James has been going through. Sure, people who really follow b-ball might have known about them, but not everybody. Those guys raised the bar for kids like Lebron James. I think it'll only get worse from here on out...

Well, I think the media coverage/pressure will only get worse, but I think the punishment given to James was harsh enough to deter future prep stars. They were trying to make a statement(hypocritical as it is), and it was heard loud and clear.

NJ loses again!

Oh yeah, I remember hearing about this guy.

So what's he been up to since high school?