INDEPENDENCE, Ohio: LeBron James keeps his Olympic gold medal in his home office, and from time to time Cleveland's star takes a peek at it.

"It's a pretty sight," he said.

James spent part of his summer helping the US basketball team redeem its global superiority by winning it all at the Beijing Games. At just 23, he was the undisputed leader of that 12-player squad comprised of superstar talents and supersized egos.

"If you can lead 11 of the best guys in the world, you can lead anybody," James said on Monday. "If I can lead Kobe Bryant and MVPs, I should be able to lead Daniel Gibson."

James has visions of another exquisite, glittering prize - the NBA championship trophy. And he thinks it's within the Cavaliers' reach.

"As a leader, I think I can lead these guys to the championship," he said. "We really believe that. It's not about making the playoffs for our team anymore. It's about winning a championship."

The Cavaliers have come close. Two years ago, they made their first trip to the finals before being overwhelmed and swept in four games by the San Antonio Spurs. Last season, they pushed the eventual champion Boston Celtics to seven games in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

This year, the Cavaliers, who acquired point guard Mo Williams this summer in a trade from the Milwaukee Bucks, feel they can finish the job.

"We all have one goal, and that's a championship," said Williams, who averaged 17.2 points, 6.3 assists and 3.5 rebounds for the Bucks. "We're not just talk. Every team in the league is saying they are going to win a championship. But we're confident. We know that if we put in the work and focus, we can do it. It's all we talk about."

James has a different aura about him as he enters his sixth season as a pro.

In many ways, he's still a kid. As he sat down to field questions, James tore open a bag of candy to snack on before posing for photographers who politely asked him to smile while demanding he hold a basketball every way its humanly possible. At one point, teammate Anderson Varejao interrupted one session and stood next to James wearing an "I'm With Stupid" T-shirt.

Williams, who scored a season-high 27 points against the Cavaliers last season, is the best point guard Cleveland has had since James arrived, and with him on the floor, the Cavaliers should be able to play at a faster pace than in previous years.

"He can allow me to play off him," James said. "I don't have to bring the ball up as much. I'm going to emphasize on just running the floor a lot. You look at me in the summer time, when I'm playing with great point guards like Jason Kidd and Deron Williams and Chris Paul. For the most part, you just see me run the floor. It's easy for me. Now with Mo Williams here and Delonte (West) and Boobie (Gibson), I can do that. I can get out on the break."

James can't seem to get a break from the endless speculation that he intends to leave Cleveland as a free agent when his contract runs out in two years. But he has also fueled that by constantly wearing a New York Yankees baseball cap and expressing his loyalty to the Bronx Bombers, as well as the NFL's Dallas Cowboys.

James wishes all the talk would stop.

"I've never given no indication I was leaving Cleveland," James said. "I love being here. I love playing in front of these fans. My family is here. I grew up 30 miles away from here. Now I did say I like the Yankees and the Cowboys. It has nothing to do with the Cavaliers."

Agencies

(China Daily 10/01/2008 page11)