LeBron James reinstated.

[BktBallRef]

James will miss Feb. 23 game against Toledo Scott

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Associated Press

AKRON, Ohio -- LeBron James was cleared Wednesday to resume his high school career, but he must sit out at least one more game.

Summit County Judge James R. Williams issued a temporary restraining order that will allow the 18-year-old superstar to get back onto the court, though James must serve a two-game suspension.

James, a 6-foot-8 senior at St. Vincent-St. Mary who is expected to be the No. 1 pick in this year's NBA draft, already missed a game after the Ohio High School Athletic Association on Friday declared him ineligible for accepting free sports jerseys valued at $845 from a store.

James will miss the Feb. 23 game against Toledo Scott, the school said in a statement released Wednesday. That game will come four days after a scheduled hearing.

In a one-hour hearing, Williams listened to arguments from OHSAA attorney Steven Craig and James' attorney, Fred Nance. The judge met with both sides in his chambers for much of the morning before bringing them into the courtroom. James did not attend the hearing.

Williams said James would suffer "immediate and irreparable injury'' without a court order. He did not say why he overruled the OHSAA.

"He wants to finish what he started,'' Nance told the judge. "He didn't want to let himself down. He didn't want to let his team down. He didn't want to let his school down.''

Nance did not absolve James for accepting the jerseys.

"He's made mistakes,'' Nance said. "He's an 18-year-old kid but he didn't deserve the ultimate sanction of losing his eligibility.''

James' family planned to make a statement later Wednesday, Nance said.

The judge scheduled a hearing for Feb. 19, when he will decide whether to grant a permanent injunction or go to trial.

"Neither side is going to be happy,'' Williams said. "There are a number of issues the court wants to hear.''

If Williams grants a permanent order, James would regain his eligibility and the school would regain a victory it had to forfeit as part of the OHSAA ruling.

St. Vincent-St. Mary's has four games left in the regular season, three of them before the next court hearing. The team, No. 1 in the USA Today rankings for the fourth straight week, is next scheduled to play Saturday in Trenton, N.J.

Principal David Rathz was disappointed that James wasn't exonerated.

"I like things clear-cut,'' he said. "This is a tie. I don't like ties.''

In a statement, the private Roman Catholic school said it "was gratified by the decision which will immediately return LeBron James to competition with his teammates.

"Although we had hoped there would be no additional sanction, we understand and accept the courts' imposition of a one-game playing suspension.''

Muscaro attended the hearing, which attracted a media throng, including seven camera crews set up in the back of the courtroom.

OHSAA lawyer Craig said he will begin preparing for the next hearing.

"There are some facts that are in dispute and we will put forth some evidence so the court can know wherein the truth lies,'' he said.

Nance argued in court documents filed Tuesday that James did nothing wrong when he accepted two "throwback'' jerseys from the owner of a Cleveland clothing store.

"All LeBron did was receive a gift from a friend as congratulations for his academic achievements,'' Nance said. "Had LeBron wished to capitalize on his fame, the recompense could be in the millions of dollars.''

James says he has a 3.5 grade-point average. He has said he returned the jerseys.

The OHSAA found that the store gave James the Gale Sayers and Wes Unseld jerseys in exchange for posing for pictures to be displayed on its walls.

Muscaro ruled that James broke an amateur bylaw "by capitalizing on athletic fame by receiving money or gifts of monetary value.''

Muscaro's decision came four days after the OHSAA cleared James of any wrongdoing for accepting a $50,000 Hummer H2 sport utility vehicle as an 18th birthday gift from his mother.

Gloria James provided proof she obtained a bank loan to buy the vehicle. She said Wednesday that she is pleased her son can keep playing.

"I look forward to getting the final hearing behind us so that LeBron can focus entirely on his schoolwork, basketball and his friends, just like any other teenager, as much as possible,'' she said.

James attended practice Tuesday in the school's gym, wearing a gray T-shirt and blue shorts. He warmed up with his teammates and was stretching in the middle of the floor when coach Dru Joyce closed the practice.

Joyce then ordered green cloth banners to be hung over the glass doors, so no one could see inside.

[Mark Padgett]

Originally posted by BktBallRef
"All LeBron did was receive a gift from a friend as congratulations for his academic achievements,'' Nance said.

Yeah - and look - there go some pigs flying past the window!

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally posted by Mark Padgett

Yeah - and look - there go some pigs flying past the window!

Whoa!! Let's not be hasty!

[canuckrefguy]

Take all the stuff written and said about this guy and put in "computer software genius" wherever you see the words "basketball player".

Is all this still such a big deal?

[Hawks Coach]

Not a bad comparison. My mother worked for a graduate engineering program at a well-known private institution. The program's director had a son who was a computer whiz. At 16-17 years old, he designed an advanced game engine that ultimately was used to power some very popular computer games.

Dad wanted him to go to school - he took the job and instant cash. Still collects royalties, though I think he also has had some of the same adjustment issues that athletes face when jumping straight from HS to big bucks. But nobody ended up saying that he was wrong for doing what he did - it is acceptable to do it in the right field.

That said, I think there is a lot more instant $ for sports stars than for academic stars, and certainly more renown. Nobody knows this other kid's name, they just play the games he gave hem the power to create.

[canuckrefguy]

I guess I just get sick of all the pontificating (there's that word again!) about "amateur" sports stars, especially NCAA ones. I'm a big believer in overhauling the system, paying the players, opening the colleges' books, etc, to eliminate all the fuss and feathers it seems to create.

People complain constantly about sports figures: salaries, their attitudes, every little thing they do. Other notable people in society (rock stars, actors, etc), who may do the same things and act the same way, are not held to the same level of scrutiny. It's hypocritical and pathetic.

Yes, athletes are treated special, and why-don't-we-treat-academic-stars-the-same-way-yada-yada-yada. That's a larger (and legitimate) discussion for another time.

If he blows out his knee, and has nothing to fall back on, where will all this "concern" be? Although he does claim to be a 3.5.

Bottom line: let the kid be. The world's a twisted place.

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

The judge is a disgrace to the legal profession. LB took the jerseys knowing full well that he was violating OhioHSAA rules. Whether the store gave him the shirts because it wanted to give some "love" to a famous athlete or because it wanted to give him something for letting the store take his picture (because he is a famous athlete) so the store could hang the picture on one of its walls where customers could see it, taking the jerseys made him a professional athlete. LB knew what he was doing. He was 18 years old, that makes him an adult, subject to the law as an adult. He is old enough to vote, get married, sign a contract, and even be drafted and/or serve in the military. He needs to suffer the consequences of his deliberate at of professionalism.

[devdog69]

...This just in...The opinions of MTD, Sr. do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the majority of officials on this site...

[BktBallRef]

Originally posted by devdog69
...This just in...The opinions of MTD, Sr. do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the majority of officials on this site...

They rarely ever do.

[JRutledge]

Originally posted by canuckrefguy
Take all the stuff written and said about this guy and put in "computer software genius" wherever you see the words "basketball player".

Is all this still such a big deal?

Let me ask you this then. Would anyone be getting over $800 worth of stuff because they were a "computer software genius?" Would they make the cover of Forbes Magazine just for their grades alone or Computer Weekly? (not a real magazine, but you get the point) And better yet, would any of these "computer genius" even be paid by a booster, other than their education to go to college?

When you play a sport at that level, you have to follow rules. When you do not follow rules, you run the risk of losing that previledge. No different than being licensed as an official. We have rules we must follow. If we do not follow them, they take our licenses away.

Peace

[rainmaker]

Originally posted by BktBallRef

They rarely ever do.

I don't always agree with MTD, but I do in this case. The statement by James' mother that "now he can back to his studies and his teammates" is ridiculous. No one was trying to keep him from his studies. The only thing that kept him from his teammates was attention he chose to give for a photo shoot. No one forced him into that. The point is, he cheated. Pure and simple. He got caught, and now all of a sudden he's a poor abused little ghetto kid who can't get a break from "the man"? Sorry, I don't buy it.

And I still can't figure how he could get a 3.5 at a private catholic school, if he isn't smart enough to get more for a photo shoot that a couple of old jerseys.

[BktBallRef]

Originally posted by rainmaker
I don't always agree with MTD, but I do in this case. The statement by James' mother that "now he can back to his studies and his teammates" is ridiculous. No one was trying to keep him from his studies. The only thing that kept him from his teammates was attention he chose to give for a photo shoot. No one forced him into that. The point is, he cheated. Pure and simple. He got caught, and now all of a sudden he's a poor abused little ghetto kid who can't get a break from "the man"? Sorry, I don't buy it.

And I still can't figure how he could get a 3.5 at a private catholic school, if he isn't smart enough to get more for a photo shoot that a couple of old jerseys.

I don't recall anyone here calling him "a poor abused little ghetto kid who can't get a break from "the man"?"

Bottom line, I don't believe the punishment fit the crime. Just seems a little too strict IMHO.

[Adam]

The software kid doesn't have any amateur elegibility to worry about. He can make all the money he wants to. This seems pretty simple to me, and I cannot possibly think anyone believes he got the jerseys for academic achievement.
I'm also tired of hearing people complain about him being exploited by his school and the Ohio Association. All the publicity they've gotten him is going to pay him huge dividends when he signs his first endorsement deal.
Now that I'm on the topic, how did his Mom get a $50,000 loan to by that hummer anyway? She must be a lawyer or something.

And, as long as these athletes get paid the big bucks, they are by default taking on the role-model job. That's why they get big money, because people (lots of people) like to watch them play. It comes with the money. They are held to a higher standard for the same reason they make more money.
Okay, I'm off my soapbox now.

snaqs

[Dan_ref]

Originally posted by devdog69
...This just in...The opinions of MTD, Sr. do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the majority of officials on this site...

...or on this planet

[Dan_ref]

Originally posted by Snaqwells


Now that I'm on the topic, how did his Mom get a $50,000 loan to by that hummer anyway? She must be a lawyer or something.


snaqs

If James had spent 6 yrs at Harvard, gaining a law degree and a 6 figure offer from a Wall Street law firm he could have gotten that $50K loan 6 months before he graduated
(and he wouldn't need to put it in his mother's name).

In 2 months James will have an 8 figure sneaker contract, whether or not he ever plays 1 minute in the NBA. A $50K loan is no big deal for someone with that kind of earning potential. Let's all get over it, shall we