James said Saturday he is going to consider signing an extension with the Cavaliers this summer, well before he can become an unrestricted free agent.

"You play out this season of course; I will consider it," James said Saturday before the Cavs practiced at the Pepsi Center.

"The direction we are headed is everything I expected and more."

This is the first time James has publicly talked about signing this summer instead of waiting until 2010.

It is an indication of how pleased James is with the progress the Cavaliers have made this season as they are off to a 22-4 start, the second-best record in the NBA.

In 2006, James signed a three-year, $43 million deal with the Cavs through 2010 and it included a player option for 2010-11 worth $17.4 million.

There has been a general assumption that James will forgo his player option, but no one has been paying attention to the other choice, which is to extend his contract with the Cavs early.

There is still a good chance James will not sign early and let things play out in 2010. Waiting will give him a chance to evaluate the entire scene before making a decision.

But James has thought about this summer and so have the Cavs, who will most certainly offer him a maximum-level deal whenever he wants.

"I definitely want to keep an open mind, I will look at everything," James said. "[The extension] is a good point. I think me and my group have pretty much made good decisions so far, and we'll look at the options and go from there."

Overall, James has all kinds of choices, including his Nike contract. There has been quite a bit of attention paid to the fact that his Nike deal also ends in 2010, and many have assumed he'll negotiate that new deal at about the same time.

However, James has a three-year extension clause in the Nike deal he can activate if he so chooses. His yearly salary with Nike could actually be higher now than what he could get with a new deal, especially considering the state of the economy and the general downturn in athlete endorsements.

In addition there is no clause in James' Nike contract that will pay him more if he plays in a major market like New York or Los Angeles, another fact that has been misreported at times. When James first signed with Nike, there were some incentives for being in New York, Chicago or L.A., but those have since expired.

There is still a good chance James will do a new deal with Nike.

One influence on James' decision this summer could come from his friends, Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat and Chris Bosh of the Toronto Raptors. All three are members of the same draft class, all three can be free agents in 2010, and Wade and Bosh also will have the chance to sign early.

Clearly, James is pleased with the Cavs' franchise, off to its best-ever start at 22-4 heading into today's game against the Thunder in Oklahoma City.

In the wake of setting the franchise steals record last week and already owning the scoring record, James was even joking this weekend with his teammates about his future. Especially with center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who just took over the franchise rebounding mark. But Ilgauskas' record may not last long, James hinted.

"By the time I get done," James said. "I'm going to hold all the records."

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: bwindhorst@plaind.com, 216-999-5166