Jayson Tatum: 'Means the World to Me' to Win Kobe Bryant Trophy as All-Star Game MVP

Jayson Tatum set an All-Star Game record with 55 points, led Team Giannis to a 184-175 victory over Team LeBron and won the event's MVP award, named after his idol, Kobe Bryant.

"It means the world to me," he told reporters." … Everybody knows how much [Kobe] meant to me. My favorite player, my idol. So it's an honor to take this home."

It became clear at a certain point of the game that Tatum had his eyes on the MVP award.

He aggressively sought out his shot with a game-high 31 field-goal attempts and unleashed 18 three-pointers. That might have been a concern if he wasn't on fire from the floor, but he ended up going 22-of-31 from the field and 10-of-18 from downtown.

It was a brilliant display from the Celtics star, and he also treated fans to arguably the most entertaining stretch of the game when a de-facto one-on-one matchup broke out between Tatum and Boston teammate Jaylen Brown.

They both scored on each other as the rest of the players on the floor cleared out for the final minute of the third quarter.

Tatum wasn't the only one on Team Giannis who impressed. Donovan Mitchell dropped 40 points and 10 assists in front of the Utah Jazz fans in his old home, and Damian Lillard scored 26, including the final three on the game-winning shot that helped his side reach the target score.

Lillard also made a shot from beyond halfcourt as the trio caught fire in the third quarter.

Yet it was Tatum who ultimately stole the show and got to reflect on time spent with his idol after winning his first career All-Star Game MVP trophy.