CLEVELAND (AP) LeBron James plans to watch the NBA's slam dunk contest _ for now.

James was not among the four players named Tuesday by the league to take part in Saturday night's contest during All-Star weekend in Los Angeles, but the Cavaliers' teenage rookie star has been hinting at a possible surprise appearance.

James recently turned down an invitation from the league to be in one of the weekend's glamor events because of a sprained right ankle that sidelined him for three games.

However, James said he may reconsider.

``I don't know,'' he said. ``I'll think about it. There are a lot of people who want me to do it.''

On Tuesday, the league announced that Golden State's Jason Richardson will go for his third straight dunking crown against Boston's Ricky Davis, Denver's Chris Andersen and Indiana's Fred Jones.

No player has won three slam-dunk contests since the competition began in 1984.

While James remains noncommittal, there are signs that he might be ready to show his stuff.

Near the end of warmups before Monday night's game against Boston, James twice practiced a twisting, two-handed dunk that teammate Kedrick Brown couldn't match.

Also, this year's event is sponsored by Sprite, which signed James to a six-year, multimillion-dollar marketing and endorsement deal in August.

James said the decision whether to dunk or not will be his.

``I don't feel pressure,'' he said. ``There are a lot of people who want me to be in it, but it's no pressure like it's a life or death situation.''

James is scheduled to play in Friday's Rookie Challenge and the dunk contest would be yet another appointment on a busy itinerary for the No. 1 draft pick, who Monday night became the youngest player in league history to score 1,000 points.

In addition to fulfilling league obligations, James has commitments with Nike, which signed him to a six-year, $90 million deal last May.

``He's got a lot on his plate,'' said his agent, Aaron Goodwin. ``But the dunk contest will be LeBron's decision. He said no before, but if he's healthy enough, he could change his mind.''

If James does enter the contest, Goodwin is confident he'll put on quite a show.

``He's the best game dunker in the league,'' Goodwin said. ``Obviously the league is salivating at the thought of him being in it.''

James had several monster dunks in Monday night's win over Boston before straining his left calf muscle late in the third quarter. He returned in the fourth period and scored five of his 24 points in Cleveland's 97-89 win.

James was limited in practice Tuesday but expects to play Wednesday night against New Jersey.