LeBron wants max money and a title contender

CLEVELAND, Ohio: Winning comes first for LeBron James. Money ranks a close second. But the NBA club expects the superstar to play for it next season had better be prepared to offer both.

That was the message the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player had on Monday after some weekend speculation that he might be willing to settle for less than the maximum amount of money he could make under NBA rules.

"Let's get this clear," James said. "I said the max contract doesn't mean more than winning. I didn't say, 'I don't need a max contract' or 'I'm not going to get a max contract'. All I'm saying is that winning is more important to me than money at the end of the day."