JAMES' RETURN SATISFIES LOCALS JUDGE RULES IN FAVOR OF PREP STAR.

Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Staff Writer

High school basketball sensation LeBron James was cleared to play again Wednesday, the same day Taft High of Woodland Hills football/basketball star Steve Smith made the most important decision of his life by signing a letter-of-intent to play football next year at USC.

Smith, as well as other area athletes, applauded the decision by an Ohio judge that will put the St. Vincent-St. Mary star back on the court.

James, expected to be the top pick in June's NBA draft, sat out a game after the Ohio High School Athletic Association last week declared him ineligible for the rest of the season for accepting two sports jerseys worth $845 in exchange for posing for pictures. James has since returned the jerseys.

However, Summit County Judge James Williams on Wednesday issued a temporary restraining order that clears the way for James to rejoin his St. Vincent-St. Mary High School of Akron team. Williams also ruled James must sit out one more game.

Smith, who knows a bit about living in the spotlight after enduring an intense recruiting battle, believes the judge made the right decision.

``LeBron didn't know he was breaking any rules when he accepted the jerseys, and he proved that by giving them right back,'' Smith said. ``So it's only right that he gets the chance to finish his high school career.

``I can only imagine what he's going through with all the attention he gets and the scrutiny he's under,'' Smith continued. ``I got a little taste of it, but he's not just a great high school player, he's the top NBA prospect in the world, and it's a lot to ask of a teenager to always know exactly what to do in every situation, especially when people are offering you this and that all the time.''

Curtis Dunwoody, a senior on the Valencia basketball team, agreed.

``People make mistakes, and I heard that he gave the stuff back before they made him ineligible. He did the right thing, so I'm happy for him. It's his senior year, so I think he should be able to finish.''

Not everyone believes James was ignorant of the rules, though.

Cleveland of Reseda basketball player Nick Young, a junior, said James should have known better.

``(The scrutiny) is probably overwhelming for him, but the jersey thing, you have to know it's wrong,'' Young said. ``I think he's probably getting some bad advice from people around him.''

Chris Rucker, Notre Dame's standout senior forward, borrowed his father's Lexus for the day and was twirling the key in the stands before his game Wednesday.

``He probably shouldn't have taken the jerseys,'' Rucker said. ``He should have just kept them at the store and said I'm going to be graduating on June whatever. And I'll be back for them then.''

Rucker saw James at a luncheon this season but couldn't get within 50 feet of him because of LeBron's bodyguard. Rucker had seen James at AAU tournaments before.

``It feels like you're in the presence of greatness when you're around him,'' Rucker said.

Williams, the judge, ruled that James would suffer ``immediate and irreparable injury'' had he not granted the restraining order. Williams will decide whether to make the order permanent at a second hearing Feb. 19.

St. Vincent-St. Mary's has four games remaining before the high school playoffs. The nation's top-ranked team has been capitalizing on James' celebrity and reaping financial rewards from coast to coast this season in tournament appearance fees.

The team's next game will be Saturday against Westchester of Los Angeles in Trenton, N.J.

James' attorney, Fred Nance, argued his client did nothing wrong when he accepted the jerseys from the owner of a Cleveland clothing store. The OHSAA accused James of breaking one of its bylaws by ``capitalizing on athletic fame by receiving money or gifts of monetary value.''

``All LeBron did was receive a gift from a friend as congratulations for his academic achievements,'' Nance argued. ``Had LeBron wished to capitalize on his fame, the recompense could be in the millions of dollars.''

Taft basketball player Matt Cook finds it interesting James was singled out for accepting two jerseys from a friend considering high school athletes get free sports gear all the time.

``If they looked into every high school, then everyone would be ineligible. There wouldn't be any teams left to play.'' Cook said. ``You look at a Nike-sponsored school and their players get three and four pairs of shoes, Nike practice shorts, Nike practice jerseys, Nike sweatsuits. The list goes on and on. There isn't any difference between that and what LeBron did, it's just that he's under the spotlight.''

Thousand Oaks basketball coach Rich Endres agrees.

``I question the use of money in the terms of sponsored teams. How is this different than high school kids in some of our local high schools being a sponsored team receiving money or equipment from Adidas or Nike?'' Endres said. ``How is that ... different?''

Associated Press and staff writers Chris Cocoles, Rich Hammond, Gideon Rubin and Ramona Shelburne contributed.

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An Ohio judge Wednesday ruled prep star LeBron James must sit out one more game before rejoining his team.

Scott R. Galvin/Associated Press