Roy means King and King means James: LeBron James

The only athlete who faces expectations like Roy Jones Jr. is Tiger Woods.\nTiger has little to prove. Jones still has much to prove.\nUniversally recognized as the the world's finest "pound-for-pound" boxer, he heads into the ring Saturday night against Antonio Tarver back in the 175-pound light heavyweight division after a one-fight dalliance as a heavyweight.\nIn that dalliance, Jones took apart John Ruiz for Ruiz's World Boxing Association heavyweight title. The expectations arise from that whipping of Ruiz. Observers want Jones to be like the Barenaked Ladies: everything to everyone.\nAfter all, being the world's best pound-for-pound boxer and a dime will get you a cab ride downtown but nothing more. The average boxing fan, the one who cares only when they decide to mention it on "SportsCenter," cares about heavyweights and only heavyweights.\nClearly, Jones' frame cannot support being a heavyweight. He'll never be able to ascend to the "superheavyweight" frame that Lennox Lewis -- remember him? -- comfortably sports. You wouldn't wish him to fight Lewis because of the size disadvantage.\nBut what more does Jones, 48-1 with 38 knockouts, have to do in the sport? At 34, his skills have slipped somewhat in recent years, making him almost human. But nobody fights like him, not with the loping left hook and power right. Nobody can get away without using a jab like he can.\nAnd nobody moves like him. Weaving his way in and out of traffic, Jones is the all-around athlete who just happened to get into boxing. \nYou can't hit what you can't catch. Nobody symbolizes this boxing axiom more than Jones.\nBoxing hasn't really been known for athleticism of the competitors; it's more about toughness. Power draws more "oohs" and "aahs" than speed. People will love a boxer more for a steel jaw than flying feet.\nFor Jones, pushing his weight up into the heavyweight class would compromise that speed. But the heavyweight class is where the money is. That's where the world's most marketable boxer/sideshow Mike Tyson is.\n"From technically superior fighters like former middleweight champion Reggie Johnson to towering power punchers like Richard Hall, the defensive mastery of Jones has enabled him to outwit, out-smart and out-fight every single opponent he has ever faced inside the boxing ring," boxing writer David A. Avila writes on maxboxing.com.\nSo will Jones continue to fight light heavyweight and prove his greatness? Or will he become a full-time heavyweight and grab as much cash as he can before he becomes too old? Wait and see.\nOn the other hand, the expectations have met performance for LeBron James. The No. 1 pick in the National Basketball Association draft has generally excelled through his first three games. Averaging 18 points, 7.3 rebounds, 7.7 assists per game and 2.33 steals per game, first impressions show that he'll lead NBA rookies in assists and steals and will be up there in scoring and rebounding, as well.\nFurthermore, Cavaliers coach Paul Silas has James playing point guard, by far the hardest position to play for an NBA rookie. Point guards not only have to know where they have to be but where everybody else has to be. They also have to be able to defend, and the first time a rookie runs into a massive 285-pound center setting a blind ball screen for the opposing point guard is usually one time too many and the ultimate NBA indoctrination. (Bobby Hurley got schooled so often by screen-and-roll during his rookie season that my ribs still hurt.)\nWhat shocks me is how many skeptics James has. Respected scouts were saying two years ago that a team would have picked James first in the draft after his junior year in high school had he entered the draft.\nSome, and maybe I've watched too many episodes of "Around the Horn" and "Pardon the Interruption," have refused to believe in him. The outright ageism shown by many in the media is sadly predictable.\nThe best explanation for such ageism is inability to relate. Sportswriters, who have always struggled to relate to the modern athlete and like to drop a "phat" or some other bit of urban jargon to prove their hipness, just don't want to deal with it. They worry that younger players like James will be disrespectful. \nAnother factor is if the scouts are right and James turns out to be an all-time great, the sportswriters will be forced to admit that the scouts know what they are talking about. By admitting that, they admit to not knowing everything.\nDon't expect it.