INTERNATIONAL BASKETBALL James hoping to help U.S. regain No. 1 spot

Happy with his NBA contract, LeBron James is focusing on the U.S. team.
LAS VEGAS (AP) -- LeBron James is only into three-year commitments these days.
The Cleveland Cavaliers' All-Star forward reported to the U.S. national team's training camp on Wednesday with a new NBA contract, signed a day earlier in Las Vegas.
"It feels good," he said. "I'm happy to be staying with the same team. I'll try to get better and win a championship. ... For the security of myself, my friends and family, and then for the fans, I think it's great for them. They should be relieved, I guess."
Hardly. The meager three-year length of that deal has caused consternation among fans back in his native Ohio, but James said he's more focused on the Americans' three-year drive to put USA Basketball back on top of the world.
James clearly has a burning desire for international superstar-dom. He's in position for it with the U.S. squad -- and though he wouldn't talk about it, some believe Nike's poster boy can't become a worldwide phenomenon unless he eventually leaves small-market Cleveland for the bright lights of New York or Los Angeles.
Three-year decision
James' decision to sign a three-year deal suggests Team LeBron might feel the same way, and his first extensive public comments weren't terribly revealing.
James initially planned to sign a five-year contract, but chose the shorter deal days later. That decision made Cleveland fans awfully nervous -- and James didn't exactly calm their fears.
"It was just the way I felt," James said. "I feel more comfortable signing a three-year deal with a fourth-year option more than signing a five-year deal with a sixth-year option. I feel more comfortable with it, and that's what I did."
When asked about his future in Cleveland beyond the deal, James wasn't taking the bait.
"That's a while. I can't think about that right now," he said with mock exasperation. "I just signed the contract yesterday, and now you want me to be thinking about the next one?"
Focusing on U.S. team
James seems focused on carving out a large role on coach Mike Krzyzewski's U.S. team that's headed for an Asian tour culminating at the world championships in Japan next month. Far from being soured by his bench-warming experience at the Athens Olympics, where he averaged 5.4 points in limited playing time, James seems determined to showcase his game on a bigger stage.
"I hope my experience is a lot better than 2004, of course," James said. "I hope I've got a bigger role in this year's world games, and then the next two summers. ... There's always pride. It's great to represent your country by doing what you love to do. It doesn't get any better than this."
Three years into his NBA career, the 21-year-old James still is a basketball prodigy: He has more points, assists and rebounds at a younger age than any player in history.
But Dwyane Wade beat him to the real finish line as the first member of the vaunted 2003 draft class to lead his club to a championship. James' Cavs reached the second round of the playoffs this season, but couldn't get past Detroit.
The Cavaliers have made extensive efforts to keep James happy and supported, signing a bumper crop of free agents last summer and making renovations to their arena while building a new training complex. Cleveland now is pushed up against the salary cap, making big additions unlikely.
The scenario
But nobody who has seen James' game would be surprised if he led the Cavs to their first championship with largely the same supporting cast -- and if he breaks the title drought that's plagued Cleveland since the Browns' 1964 NFL crown, most believe he would be able to leave for bigger things with pride.
James feels those matters are best discussed in the fall, when NBA training camp opens. Until then, he's devoted to his new teammates, starting with two weeks of workouts in Las Vegas leading to the world championships.
"It was awesome," James said after practice Wednesday. "For the first day, all of us came together pretty fast. A lot of guys are friends here, so it's easy to come together as a team."
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