NBA teams
Darren Rovell, ESPN Senior Writer 10y

Poll: LeBron's reputation improving

NBA, Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat

LeBron James is coming back, not only to Cleveland but back into the public's favor.

According to a poll taken this month by California-based E-Poll, Americans like James more than they ever have since he made the "Decision" to leave the Cavaliers for the Miami Heat four years ago.

The company takes the opinions of 1,100 people, ages 13 and up that reflect a representative sampling of the U.S. population, in a poll and uses that data to give the more than 8,000 celebrities in its database an E-Score ranging from 0 to 100, with 100 being the most known, liked and appealing.

This month, James scored an 80, up from 67 just a year before. In June 2010, James had an E-Score of 84, but after "The Decision" that number fell to 47.

"He has been on a roller coaster, with all the peaks and valleys you'd expect," E-Poll's president and CEO Gerry Philpott said. "I think the loss to the Spurs actually helped him, made him look more human, and then his coming back to Cleveland, and the way he did it, did even more to change how people viewed him. I think a big part of that was how deep he went on admitting why his original decision wasn't handled right."

Philpott said James' comeback fits the format of other celebrities, who, for whatever reason, are disliked by the public.

"I think [that] much of the public feels like he's done his time," Philpott said.

James' highest E-Score was 87 in January 2010, a mark Philpott thinks he can top.

Said Philpott: "He probably won't get to 100, like [Michael] Jordan did, but I think he can get into the 90s before he retires."

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