Grandmothers' club still cheering for LeBron

AKRON, Ohio - LeBron James has been vilified by many fans ever since he decided to take his talents to South Beach. But, at least one group of older and vocal ladies still supports James.

The LeBron James Grandmother's Fan Club started in 2006 with 20 members. It has grown to 200. All of them have grandchildren.

Call them grannies with guts and gumption, especially on the most anticpated basketball game of the NBA season-- James' first game at The Q in a Miami Heat uniform.

"I'm gonna cheer for the Miami Heat," said Linda Gilbert, who is going to the game. She realizes the heat is going to be on James, as he faces an angry crowd.

"It's gonna be tense. It's gonna be tense," Gilbert said.

LeBron's decision to bolt to Miami depressed and deflated Northeast Ohio, but it didn't deter his biggest supporters in the grandmother's club.

"He's a young man that's going places and wherever he goes, we're going to be his fan club," said Alder Chapman, the president and founder of the club, based in James' hometown of Akron.

When LeBron moved on, the club changed its logo to reflect his new team. It shows flames shooting out of a crown.

Some of the grannies said they're worried that the ridicule from 20,000 frustrated fans will be over the top.

"I don't think as a fan that people have a right to pay 'X' amount of dollars for a ticket for entertainment and then they think they own somebody's soul," Jessie Johnson said.

The club members still like the Cavaliers, but their support is firmly behind the player, who got his start at Akron St. Vincent St. Mary.

"This will always be his home. And, he can always come back," Georgia Richardson said.

After tonight, only James can say how welcome he feels back in Northeast Ohio.