Dec. 13
Now that the hullabaloo is all over, and the LeBron James show has been played out, here are my thoughts on being part of the St. Mary-St. Vincent vs. Oak Hill game on ESPN2, which turned into an event.

In my 24 years of calling basketball games, including NCAA tournament matchups, Duke-North Carolina games and NBA contests, I've never seen anything like this. My phone kept ringing, asking for interviews. I am LeBron-ed out, baby!

	LeBron James dazzled in the national spotlight Thursday with a 31-point performance.

I have great respect for those who bring up the term "exploitation" and ask whether this kid is being exploited because of his talents. I do have major concerns, as I expressed on the telecast, when fans are being charged $25 and $50, plus rampant scalping just to see a high school kid play.

I was asked about the hype time and time again on ESPN's own "Mike and Mike" radio show, Tim Brando's Sporting News radio show, Mitch Albom's show in Detroit, Michael Kay's show in New York, and PTI, to name a few. The bottom line is there was so much curiosity surrounding LeBron James.

That's why he was in the national spotlight on the tube. Networks are in the business of putting on a product that consumers want to see. Fans wanted to see this young man play. Look at the overnight ratings, and the interest was extremely high to see St. Vincent's-St. Mary's beat Oak Hill Academy of Mouth of Wilson, Va. (the top-ranked team in the USA Today poll). I've always been amazed by rankings of high school teams. I don't understand how they come up with these ratings, though they make for great debates.

Is there any doubt that James can play? The flair, the charisma -- he dazzled on the court. As my broadcast partner, Bill Walton, said on the telecast, James was even better than advertised. I couldn't agree more.

Seeing him in person for the first time, I could tell James' feeling for the game and his instincts are very unique and very special.

As I also said on the telecast, I am concerned about happens with those around him. He will have to find a support staff that really legitimately cares about him. Make no doubt about it -- barring any unforeseen incident or injury, he's heading for the NBA.

As anyone who knows me could tell you, I am not a proponent of high school players going directly to the NBA. I wish the system would change, but since the system is intact, who am I to judge a young guy who desires to play pro basketball?

	He's just another teenager trying to make it in the world of sports. I hope he gets his wish to take care of his mom, Gloria, who took care of him during the tough times.

Remember, college is not for everyone. I know a lot of beautiful people who learn a vocation and trade and have no desire to go to school. That doesn't make them any less of a person than someone who goes to college. Let's sit back and hope and pray things work out beautifully for this teenager.

As Christine Brennan addressed in USA Today, and I couldn't agree more, people react to teenage phenoms. We went wacky over Sarah Hughes at the Olympic figure skating, gaga over the young gymnasts who dazzle at ages 14 and 15 (who could forget Mary Lou Retton in the Olympics), and Serena and Venus Williams, and Alex Rodriguez.

Think about all the publicity, from the NY Times, LA Times, USA Today, ESPN Magazine … articles written on this young man by major publications. There has been so much scrutiny, and in this case a lot of criticism.

He's just another teenager trying to make it in the world of sports. I hope he gets his wish to take care of his mom, Gloria, who took care of him during the tough times. At age 19, she saw her house become condemned, and she took LeBron in her arms from place to place.

It's the American Dream. With the stroke of a pen, he can take care of his family for life. Isn't that beautiful?

I'm glad I could sit courtside and watch him play. He's a talented guy who possesses special skills on the court, and he handled himself so well during the interview with Jay Bilas after the game. I hope he can listen to the right people and move in a positive direction off the court as well as on.

As I said to the teams before the game, no matter who you are, whether you are Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal or Larry Bird, there comes a time when you stand at the podium and say that basketball is over and it is time to move on with your life. You have to be prepared by utilizing all the things that happened during your career to make the transition to the real world, the game of life.