Cleveland braces as Cavaliers offer James extension

CLEVELAND (AP) _ LeBron James surprised his coach, general manager and the Cleveland Cavaliers by showing up unannounced at a press conference on Friday to introduce the club's top two draft picks.

Friday, June 30th 2006, 9:55 pm

By: News On 6

CLEVELAND (AP) _ LeBron James surprised his coach, general manager and the Cleveland Cavaliers by showing up unannounced at a press conference on Friday to introduce the club's top two draft picks.

``It's good to see him _ anytime,'' coach Mike Brown said.

But especially now.

Because after 12:01 a.m. Saturday morning, the Cavaliers were expected to contact James' agent, Leon Rose, and offer the All-Star forward a five-year contract extension worth about $80 million. James, who isn't eligible to become a free agent until after the 2006-07 season, has given every indication that he intends to accept and sign the deal.

Trouble is, he can't officially sign until July 12 when the NBA's free-agent moratorium ends. So for now, Cleveland fans, burned in the past by promises made by the likes of Art Modell, Jim Thome and Carlos Boozer, are doing their best to keep the faith that the Akron-born James stays close to home.

``These are stressful times,'' Marissa Carcioppolo of Parma said after buying a silver Cavs basketball for her 5-year-old niece's birthday at the club's team shop at Quicken Loans Arena. ``Everyone is a little bit stressed out that he's going to leave us, but LeBron has said he wants to stay in Cleveland. He's home grown, and I feel like he wants to be here. His heart is here.''

The Cavaliers are counting on his other vital organs staying, too.

For months, James has expressed his happiness with the organization and its direction. The Cavaliers made the playoffs last season for the first time since 1998, and they've spent big money on free agents to help James win.

Taking a low profile near an exit door off the Cavaliers' practice floor, James didn't have much to say about his impending contract situation.

``Talk to them,'' he said, pointing toward a stage where Brown and Cavs general manager Danny Ferry were posing for pictures with draft picks Shannon Brown and Daniel Gibson. ``They'll let you know.''

James planned to stay in town for the extended holiday weekend, but he didn't know if the Cavs would be meeting with Rose soon. James even joked about his high-profile agent, who represents Andrea Bargnani, taken No. 1 overall by Toronto, and Philadelphia's Allen Iverson, rumored to be on the trading block.

``I hope he (Rose) can find some time for me,'' James said.

Ferry was extremely cautious with his words when discussing James' extension.

``This is one where you don't want to stub your toe on rules,'' he said.

The league prohibits teams from making any public statements when the free-agent signing period begins on July 1. However, teams can confirm their intent to begin talks, and Ferry said the club's first move will be making early morning contact with Rose.

``We'll make a call and allow things to unfold,'' said Ferry, who wants to re-sign free agent forward Drew Gooden. ``Feeling like we have to rush this is a mistake. The earliest he (James) can do anything is the 12th. Rushing it is not a necessity. That process starts tonight and carries on through. We're going to initiate things with them and go from there.''

The Cavaliers have exclusive negotiating rights with James this summer. As the team that drafted him, they can offer him a ``maximum'' contract extension allowed under the league's collective bargaining agreement that would kick in after the 2007-08 season. Under that deal, he would make 25 percent of the 2007-08 salary cap, which will be determined later.

Players have historically taken the extension when it's offered, primarily because of the security.

Last season, Amare Stoudemire signed his five-year, $73 million extension with Phoenix and then suffered a season-ending knee injury one week later. If he had not signed, Stoudemire would have risked never seeing that money from the Suns again.

If James chooses not to sign this summer, he can become a restricted free agent after the 2006-07 season. But the Cavaliers would still be able to match any offer sheet made to James, plus they could give him a six-year deal while other teams could only give him five.

James would not be eligible for unrestricted free agency until after the 2007-08 season.

With a busy summer ahead and his fourth NBA season looming at the other end of it, James may want to get the extension talks over with quickly. He's playing for Team USA in the World Championships and has to report to training camp in Las Vegas on July 19.

He wasn't required to be at Friday's event when the Cavaliers welcomed their draft picks. But James was there, perhaps providing another sign of his commitment to Cleveland.

``He found out and wanted to come, which is great,'' Ferry said. ``He's a big part of this and that has to make both those guys feel really pretty good, that the leader here wants to come and show some support for them.''

And how does it make the GM feel?

Ferry smiled.

``Always good to see him,'' he said.