LeBron James says he's returning to Cavaliers

CLEVELAND -- LeBron James is going back to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

James told Sports Illustrated that he's decided to go home. It's a move that would have seemed unfathomable four years ago, after the venomous fallout that followed his decision to leave Cleveland for the Miami Heat.

James told SI: "My relationship with Northeast Ohio is bigger than basketball. I didn't realize that four years ago. I do now."

He spent his first seven NBA seasons in Cleveland. In four years with the Heat, he went to the NBA Finals four times, winning two championships. And now he's heading back to Cleveland to see if he can finally deliver on his promise of winning a crown for that title-starved city.

James is from Akron, Ohio, not far from Cleveland.