LeBron James arrived and Michael Jordan retired (again). John Stockton and David Robinson also called it quits. Tim Duncan won a championship and Karl Malone left Utah in search of one. But it was Kobe Bryant who generated the most headlines after he was accused of rape.

What a year it was in the NBA, both on and off the court.

Only 12 months ago the following not only seemed possible, but probable:

_ The Lakers would win their fourth straight title.

_ Malone would never leave Utah.

_ Jordan would go down in history as a beloved teammate.

_ Bryant would be the most marketable player in the league for years to come.

_ Larry Brown and Allen Iverson would grow old together.

Well, maybe not everyone was so certain about that last one. But 2003 was still full of surprises and changes _ from how NBA players are perceived to where they play.

No event shattered people's perceptions as much as the news in early July that Bryant _ the player who had taken over the mantle from Jordan as the NBA's most beloved and mass-marketable face _ had been accused of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old hotel employee in Eagle, Colo.

The reaction of former NBA player Gary Grant was typical.

``I don't believe it. If it comes out to be true, I still won't believe it,'' Grant said a few days after the news broke. ``People just don't believe that it's his name involved.''

Indeed it was Bryant's name involved, and his fall from icon status saw him go from appearing on television in McDonald's commercials to being shown on that same medium entering and leaving the Colorado courtroom where his future will eventually be decided.

Bryant's face in a mug shot was only one of the unforeseeable snapshots that defined 2003.

Malone, after 18 seasons with the Jazz, stunned the basketball world with his announcement that he would take a nearly $20 million pay cut to play for the Lakers and try to win the title that eluded him throughout his Hall of Fame career.

The Lakers also added another future Hall of Famer, Gary Payton, to form one of the most talent-laden starting lineups ever assembled.

A year ago, the thought of Payton playing anywhere but Seattle _ where he was a fixture for 13{ seasons _ seemed hard to fathom. But Payton actually wore three different uniforms during the calendar year, getting dealt from Seattle to Milwaukee in a February trade that helped pave the way for the eventual departures of Bucks general manager Ernie Grunfeld and coach George Karl.

Karl's departure was one of an unprecedented number of coaching changes around the league.

Brown left Philadelphia for Detroit, causing the firing of Rick Carlisle after a pair of 50-win seasons. Carlisle eventually got the head coaching job in Indiana after new team president Larry Bird _ who a year ago was convinced he'd soon be running the expansion team in Charlotte _ decided to fire Isiah Thomas.

And that was just the tip of the coaching carousel iceberg.

Rudy Tomjanovich was forced out in Houston. John Lucas was fired in Cleveland. Paul Silas, who was not asked to return in New Orleans, was brought in to lead the Cavaliers in James' inaugural season.

So many other coaches lost their jobs that it's almost difficult to even remember them, including Alvin Gentry and Dennis Johnson with the Los Angeles Clippers and Keith Smart with the Cavaliers.

Even the winningest coach in league history, Lenny Wilkens, was let go by the Toronto Raptors.

``It's a player's league. It's never been about coaches,'' said Utah's Jerry Sloan, who has been with the Jazz since 1988 _ long enough for there to have been 158 head coaching changes during that span.

Major changes weren't limited to coaches. They even happened to the champions.

After defeating the New Jersey Nets in six games to win the championship, the San Antonio Spurs said goodbye to the retiring David Robinson and farewell to several other members of the team including Stephen Jackson, Steve Kerr, Steve Smith and Danny Ferry. They tried to entice Jason Kidd to the Alamo City, only to have him opt to stay in New Jersey.

The Spurs and the Lakers weren't the only top teams to make major changes in the offseason, although the upgrades and overhauls were primarily confined to teams in the better of the league's two conferences, the West.

Sacramento brought in All-Star Brad Miller, Dallas added Antoine Walker and Antawn Jamison, and Minnesota acquired Latrell Sprewell and Sam Cassell.

None of those moves could have possibly been foreseen when 2002 turned into 2003, but that was the nature of the NBA over the past 12 months.

No one expected Jordan's teammates to take parting shots at him when he retired from the Washington Wizards, but they did.

No one expected an 18-year-old to become a franchise savior, but James seems to be on his way.

No one thought Kobe Bryant to be capable of committing a felony, but that's what he's charged with.

The lesson of 2003 is that things can change dramatically, drastically and quickly. And 2004 will have a hard time living up to the unexpected nature of its predecessor.