James entertains in pro debut

? With equal parts flash and fundamentals, LeBron James was a thrill to watch Tuesday night in his pro basketball debut.

Before a huge crowd that waited several hours to get in to see him play, James had 14 points, seven rebounds and six assists as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Orlando Magic, 107-80, in the NBA summer league.

Playing 23 minutes in a 40-minute game, James was 5-for-11 — despite missing three three-point tries — from the floor and converted all four of his free throws. He had three turnovers while running Cleveland’s offense.

James’ game showed little rust although it was his first competition since late March, when he led St. Vincent-St. Mary High to its third Ohio state championship of his prep career. A little more than three months later, the 18-year-old James is worth about $100 million, thanks to endorsement deals and, to a far lesser extent, his NBA contract.

In the first three minutes, James had a wicked one-handed dunk after stealing a pass under the basket, sank a reverse layup and tossed a no-look feed in the paint that DeSagana Diop converted into a short jump hook. James later wowed the crowd of 15,123 with a reverse layup while falling down.

There were only three lowlights: In the first quarter, he air-balled a three-pointer as the shot clock wound down, and a late defensive rotation left his man open for a baseline jumper. But the worst came early in the third period, when James threw a lazy outlet pass that was picked off by Britton Johnsen, who promptly dunked on his highly hyped opponent.

The Cavaliers, who selected the 18-year-old James No. 1 overall in last month’s NBA draft, have every reason to believe that he will quickly mesh with his teammates.

Playing in Orlando’s summer league are three-fifths of the Cavaliers’ projected starting lineup: James at point guard, small forward Darius Miles and power forward Carlos Boozer. It was that unit, plus shooting guard Dajuan Wagner and center Diop, which raced out to a 16-point first-quarter advantage, giving Cleveland a lead that was never threatened by the overmatched Magic.

James’ presence added an unprecedented buzz to the summer league game. Such contests are usually informal affairs held in dimly lit gyms with scouts and coaches among the most interested spectators.

But this game was played at the Magic’s home arena, the 17,283-seat T.D. Waterhouse Centre, rather than the team’s practice facility. Fans jumped at the chance to see the league’s newest star attraction, and there were plenty of pros also gawking at James.

Among the crowd were Kansas University product Drew Gooden and fellow NBA players Chucky Atkins, Jason Williams, Amare Stoudemire and Steven Hunter, and NFL quarterback Daunte Culpepper.

Before the game, $5 tickets were being scalped for $80 and a traffic jam developed around the arena five hours before the opening tip.

“He’s exciting to watch,” said Paige Berger of Albany, N.Y. “He’s got the skills of Magic (Johnson) and (Michael) Jordan combined.”

The interest spread to the media, as well. The Magic issued about 170 credentials, about the same as for a playoff game or a visit by the Los Angeles Lakers.