Spotlights danced around Arco Arena as the long intro to AC/DC's "Thunderstruck" was pumped through the sound system. Camera phones were barely in existence, so most fans just stood and stared at LeBron James as he braced himself for what was the most pressure-filled game of his life to that point.

It was Oct. 29, 2003.

A month earlier, Nike had picked up James and several of his Cleveland Cavaliers teammates and flown them to Sacramento, Calif., in a private jet to shoot a commercial on the same floor with some of the Sacramento Kings players he was now about to play against. It was a unique marketing idea to add to the moment and so the spot could be showed during the breaks, but it also added some awkwardness. The theme of the ad: How James would handle the pressure of that night.

Waiting to make his debut was the hardest part -- then LeBron showed his stuff. Widner/NBAE/Getty Images

Before the game, the Maloof family, then owners of the Kings, publicly thanked NBA commissioner David Stern for the "gift" of giving this game to Sacramento.

Dozens of cameras and more than 100 media members came into the arena floor ... to watch James warm up. It was so densely packed that the entrance to the court from the locker rooms was blocked and irked teammates had trouble even getting into the bowl.

This was the tension at that moment and, thanks to Tracy McGrady, it unexpectedly stretched longer. McGrady was leading a late 10-0 run nearly 3,000 miles away and the Orlando Magic had forced a sudden overtime with the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. ESPN wanted the whole country to see the spectacle of James' debut, so the order came to delay the tip.

Alone near center court, James just sat on the scorer's table, chewed on his nails and tried to breathe.

"I was nervous," James said earlier this year as the 10th anniversary of his first game approached. "I couldn't sleep the night before. I take a nap before every game my whole career. I didn't get a nap that day.

"I couldn't even stretch. There was like 150 cameras on the court. I don't know how they let that happen. It was like 190 cameras in the locker room when I got there."

James was one of the most anticipated rookies ever to arrive in the league and also one of the more controversial. He was stuck in an intersection of hype, jealousy and an age debate. Now 10 years later, it is hard to imagine there were many detractors, but some high-profile names spoke out against the very idea.