ROLE MODEL CLEVELAND'S JAMES HAS BECOME AN ADVERTISER'S DREAM: AN ATHLETE WILLING TO WORK WITH SPONSORS.

Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Staff Writer

Jerry Solomon and Epoch Films had a tight schedule on the set of LeBron James' widely popular ``The LeBron's'' commercials for Nike.

Solomon had three days to shoot five commercials, and not one second more.

To the average person, that sounds like a lot of time. But Hollywood veterans know better - especially when it comes to working with prominent professional athletes.

Call it the 10-5 rule: You need the star athlete for 10 hours, and he ends up giving you five. To say their schedule doesn't always jibe with yours is an understatement.

So Solomon braced for the worst when they began shooting last August in Beverly Hills.

Instead, the Cleveland Cavaliers young superstar not only showed up on time each day, he was more prepared and precise than many Hollywood stars.

``LeBron was above and beyond what any of us could hope for,'' said Solomon, the executive producer of The LeBron's. ``He showed up ready to work. He was professional. He knew his lines. In short, he was a pleasure to work with.''

This was no ordinary shoot. James played four different characters: Athletic LeBron, Kid LeBron, Wise LeBron and Business LeBron, with the parts ranging in age from 60 to a toddler.

Picture Eddie Murphy's ``The Nutty Professor'' meeting Martin Lawrence's ``Big Momma's House.''

In the commercials, the characters sit around the family dinner table discussing sports and life, with Wise LeBron - a grumpy old man - stealing the show as he colorfully boasts about his days as a star basketball player.

The concept was developed by Wieden and Kennedy ad agency creative director Mike Byrne, who was looking for a way to capture all of James' personalities.

``You look at him and he's got so many different levels to him,'' Byrne said. ``He's wise beyond his years, he's playful but he's also got a serious, competitive side to him. He's got business sense. As we were sitting around figuring out ways to best capture that, we just sort of fell onto the concept of him playing all these different characters.''

Byrne and his team then pitched the idea to James and his advisers. To say it was an immediate hit was an understatement.

``He just busted out laughing,'' Byrne said. ``That's when we knew we were on the right track.''

Of course, the major hurdle was getting James to successfully play four different roles over the course of those three days.

``I've worked with professional actors who wouldn't be able to do it,'' Byrne said.

Solomon agrees.

``It was a difficult assignment for anyone, and there was some anxiety that he'd pull it off from a performance standpoint,'' he said.

James surprised them all, shooting each character's part individually and improvising almost every line that made it to film.

``What was so amazing was you couldn't get him out of character at all,'' Byrne said. ``When he walked out of his trailer as Wise LeBron, he was Wise LeBron. When he came on set as Business LeBron with his fancy suit, he was Business LeBron. I think everyone on set was taken aback by how well he did.''

Nike is also ready to promote Lakers star Kobe Bryant's shoe Air Zoom Kobe, with both print and television commercials set to start in February.

``The positioning is different,'' Bryant said. ``We're different people, we're different personalities. How we position LeBron from how we position myself is completely different.

``Marketing isn't something that you just make up. It is what it is. You have to be true to the person.''

James' commercials have garnered wide praise for their creativity and style - including one from Bryant, who said the ads are ``very entertaining.'' It doesn't surprise James' observers who have come to expect quality work from the young star - on and off the court.

James - the only player in the NBA ranked among the top three in jersey sales the past three years - has made a meteoric rise in popularity during his short career. Among professional athletes, he trails only Tiger Woods and Brett Favre in the latest Q Score study, and with so much time on his side, it's no stretch to think he'll eventually surpass both.

It's a popularity that derives from his success on the court, but isn't limited to it.

Entering tonight's game agains the Lakers, James is averaging 30.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and six assists for the Cavaliers. And he is scoring just as well away from the game. He has long-term endorsement deals with Nike, Upper Deck, Sprite, Powerade and Bubblicious totaling more than $140 million.

By the time he turns 25, it is estimated he will surpass $200 million in income, with only a fraction coming from his contract with the Cavaliers.

But it is more than that. James is keenly aware of his impact on young fans. He wants to create a positive image.

``I went to Nike and I saw that old Charles Barkley commercial where he said, `I'm not a role model. If you want to have a role model, look up to your parents.' It kind of startled me because kids look up to me,'' James recently told Associated Press.

``Once you become a professional athlete or once you do anything well, then you're automatically a role model. So, I didn't say I'm not going to be a role model. That's ridiculous. I have no problem being a role model. I love it. I have kids looking up to me and hopefully I inspire these kids to do good things.''

Ross Siler contributed

Vincent Bonsignore, [phone]

vincent.bonsignore(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

(1) Among professional athletes, NBA superstar LeBron James trails only Tiger Woods and Brett Favre in Q ratings.

Garrett W. Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images

(2 -- color) no caption (LeBron James)

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(3 -- color) no caption (LeBron James)