Here's how the most talked-about high school hoops player in the country hooked up with Division I-A's most talked-about true freshman:

	Of course the next Payton would be friends ...

It was last February or so, and Maurice Clarett, the lone member of Ohio State's football Class of 2001 1/2, was back home in Youngstown for a quick visit. Clarett had earned his high school diploma early and was already enrolled and taking classes at OSU. The USA Today player of the year wanted to be in a Buckeyes uniform in time for spring practice.

So he hears about this junior from Akron's St. Mary's-St. Vincent's High named LeBron James. James' team is playing at Youngstown State. The game is sold out.

"I was outside trying to buy a ticket from a scalper," says Clarett. "I'm like, 'Who is this? This is crazy. He's getting all the attention in my city!' I paid something like $35 for a ticket, and this was a high school game."

By the time Clarett got into the arena, there was hardly a seat left. An usher pointed him in one direction. Someone else shooed him to another area. Clarett finally spotted a security guard he knew and asked if he could squeeze in somewhere. The guard told him there was a seat left behind's the St M-St. V bench. "Right next to that lady," the guard said.

Clarett wasn't in his seat more than a couple of minutes when the lady started screaming at James as the Akron star went in for a dunk. "Go ahead, LeBron! Go ahead, baby!" she yelled.

Turns out it was James' mother. At halftime, a few fans spotted Clarett and asked for autographs. "So I start signing the stuff," says Clarett, "and she's probably thinking, 'Who is this? My son is the biggest star here.'"

Shortly before the beginning of the second half, Clarett introduced himself to James' mom. They started talking. And talking. By game's end she invited him back to the St. M-St. V locker room, where LeBron and Clarett exchanged handshakes, compliments and cell phone numbers. James and Clarett have kept in touch ever since.

"He don't have to pay no more," says James, laughing, when told about Clarett's ticket purchase. "I never got a chance to see him in high school. But every week you'd hear about him going over 300 yards, the touchdowns and all that. But I always watch him every Saturday [at Ohio State]. He's amazing. The hype was all true about him coming out of high school."

James and Clarett know about hype. James is considered by assorted experts as the latest "next Michael Jordan." There was talk that James could have come out as a junior in high school and still have been the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft. "I never considered it," says James.

But he is considering a jump to the NBA -- and the projected No. 1 pick -- after his senior year. That's why the likes of adidas and Nike are involved in a multi-million dollar bidding war. "It hasn't been decided yet," he says. "College is always a big part of it. You have to weigh your options, do what's best for your family."

	... with the next Jordan.

Funny, that sounds like Clarett. Clarett is weighing his options too, including the possibility of challenging the NFL's early entry rule after his freshman or sophomore season. Maybe that's why Clarett and James hit it off so well.

"I think he's just having fun through the whole process right now," says Clarett. "I don't think he's buying into all the BS. He tells me to just stay humble through the whole process."

And there's one other thing: "I tell him just keep doing what he's doing, just keep smashing these players," says James. "Personally, I don't think there's anyone better than him. If he don't win [the Heisman], I'll be disappointed."

Clarett isn't infatuated with the Heisman. He'd rather earn a January trip to Tempe, Az., and the Fiesta Bowl than a trip to New York and the Heisman ceremony -- though he'd be happy to do both. And he has one other request that only his buddy James can fulfill.

Every time I see [LeBron] I tell him, 'Tell Jordan to call me, baby,'" says Clarett. "I know I'll meet [Jordan] one day. He's gonna call me one day. That's why I wear Jordan wristbands every game -- he's a symbol of greatness."

Gene Wojciechowski is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at gene.wojciechowski@espnmag.com.