By Steven Koek, Suns.com
Posted: Oct. 29, 2003

After becoming the first player in NBA history to come straight from high school and capture Rookie-of-the-Year honors, Phoenix Suns forward Amaré Stoudemire has raised the bar for so-called prep phenoms.

He’s also escalated expectations for Cleveland Cavaliers’ forward LeBron James, who doesn’t need any additional pressure after becoming the second-ever No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft to be selected directly from high school. Last year’s recipient of the annual award for the league’s top first-year player will meet the most highly touted rookie in league history Thursday night for the first time when the Suns host the Cavs in the Home Depot Home Opener at America West Arena (8:30 p.m., TNT).

“I think I helped out a lot with the situation of guys coming out of high school,” said Stoudemire, who burst onto the scene last season after being taken by the Suns with the ninth overall pick in the 2002 draft. “My coming out of high school and getting the Rookie of the Year made a statement that high school players are mature and they can play at the league level. It’s tough. I came out with a fearless type of attitude. I play hard 82 games, every quarter. Hopefully he can do the same.”

The biggest difference between the two, of course, is that Stoudemire was a relative unknown as the 2002-03 season began a year ago, while James has been a household name in the basketball world for some time. “King James’” high school games were featured on ESPN and pay-per-view broadcasts, and he was anointed with bank-breaking endorsement deals before even shedding his warm-ups for his first game as a pro.

Stephon Marbury sees James as having the physical attributes necessary to be successful in the NBA, but thinks it will take time for him to learn the ins and outs of the league, particularly on the defensive end. While the Suns’ guard predicts that James will ultimately be a force to reckon with, he points out that the 18-year-old is following in Stoudemire’s footsteps, not the other way around.

“I think it’s going to tough for him,” said Marbury, “but I think he can adjust. He’s a really bright kid and he loves basketball, so he has a lot of things going for him.

“Amaré’s a different kind of guy, though. Amaré’s the only high school player to ever win the Rookie of the Year. Amaré doesn’t fall into LeBron James’ class. LeBron has to get to Amaré’s class. A lot of people are losing focus of that. People are forgetting that he has to go to where Amaré is at.”

Stoudemire also envisions a promising future for James after the hype dies down and he learns how to play at the top level of competition in the world.

“He should do pretty good,” said Stoudemire, who averaged 13.5 points and 8.8 boards as a rookie, the highest numbers ever turned in by a prep-turned-pro. “He’s got to understand the NBA game. It’s a lot different from high school. High school guys are much smaller, easier to just jump over and dunk on, but this is the NBA. Everybody’s special here, so you’ve got to bring you’re ‘A’ game.”

Suns Head Coach Frank Johnson has a tough time relating to what James is going through in trying to live up to such lofty expectations. But the former NBA guard, who was nicknamed “Fourth Quarter Frank” for his late-game heroics during his playing days in Phoenix, is more concerned with how his team plays Thursday night than how James responds to all the attention or his much-publicized shooting woes.

“I was never that young in this league and never that good,” he smiled. “I can’t relate to that and as far as missing shots, I don’t remember missing many shots, so I can’t relate to that, either (laughs)… I’m not excited to see what he can do against us; I’m excited to see what we can do.”

From Marbury’s perspective, there is no middle ground in how LBJ’s career will pan out. But he admits it may take several seasons to fully discover which way he goes.

“He’s going to progress or he’s going to flop,” said Marbury, who entered the league as a 19-year-old back in 1996-97. “It’s going to be one or the other. From the way I look, I think he’s going to progress. I don’t think that he’ll be a flop, but it’s definitely going to take some time. It’s going to take some years. The NBA is hard. All that talk about him averaging 30 points (this season), that’s not going to happen.”

The buzz James has created to start this 2003-04 NBA season has all eyes looking to what the Ohio school kid can do against the best players in the world. But Stoudemire is grateful for the opportunity he had to surprise people with incredible skills rather than have to live up to the enormous expectations that have been placed on his high school successor.

“I think (coming in under the radar) is the best way to come,” he said. “Guys don’t know about you and then you blossom in front of everybody.”