Kobe Bryant vs. LeBron James: How Superstar Showdown Played Out on Christmas Day
In a rematch of last year's Christmas meeting between arguably the two best players in the league, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant, King James took home the victory in lopsided fashion once again, this time with the Miami Heat.
The Heat made their biggest claim to being the No.1 contender for the title, putting on a clinic for the back-to-back champion Lakers. The Heat have now won 14 of 15, including victories against the over-.500 Knicks, Hawks and Jazz.
It wasn't even close, as LeBron went for his third triple-double of the year, leaving the floor with 27 points, snatching 11 rebounds and dishing 10 assists. Chris Bosh backed him up with a double-double, going for 24 and a game-high 13 rebounds. Dwyane Wade pitched in 18 points of his own, as L.A. could not find an answer for the big three who combined for a punishing 69 points, 29 rebounds and 18 assists.
Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol managed 17 points each on the other side of the ball, with Lamar Odom adding another 14.
But it was all Heat all day. The Lakers largest lead of the game, 7-2, came less than three minutes in. But following Bosh's jump shot at the five-and-a-half minute mark of the first quarter to take a 12-10 lead, Miami never looked back, leading straight to the end. They finished the first quarter up by six and added another three to the deficit to make the score 47-38 at the end of the half.
It would only get worse. Thanks to two buckets by Bryant, one a three, and a Gasol jumpshot, the Lakers came as close as they would for the rest of the game: 51-45 early in the third quarter.
But by the time the period would end, the Heat would be sitting on an 11-point lead. They widened the gap by as much as 21 in the fourth, before finally taking the game 96-80.
A perturbed Kobe Bryant was still left with a taste for revenge following this second holiday debacle in a row. Last year LeBron's Cleveland Cavaliers torched Kobe's Lakers by 15, 102-87. James has in fact won the last three meetings...and it's even worse than that.
LeBron owns Kobe.
The two have met on the hardwood 14 times, including today. LeBron's Cavaliers won eight of their 13 meetings with Kobe's Lakers.
The all-time matchup between LeBron James and Kobe Bryant is 9-5 in favor of King James:
Jan. 12, 2004: Cavaliers 79, Lakers 89 (Kobe 1 - LeBron 0)
Kobe: 10 pts (.375), 5 rebounds, 2 assists
LeBron: 16 pts (.300), 5 rebounds, 7 assists
Jan. 13, 2005: Cavaliers 94, Lakers 98 (Kobe 2 - LeBron 0)
Kobe: 2 pts (.500), 0 rebounds, 3 assists
LeBron: 28 pts (.462), 13 rebounds, 9 assists
Feb. 13, 2005: Lakers 89, Cavaliers 103 (Kobe 2 - LeBron 1)
Kobe: 26 pts (.318), 4 rebounds, 6 assists
LeBron: 25 pts (.400), 8 rebounds, 9 assists
Jan. 12, 2006: Cavaliers 98, Lakers 99 (Kobe 3 - LeBron 1)
Kobe: 27 pts (.429), 2 rebounds, 2 assists
LeBron: 28 pts (.500), 2 rebounds, 9 assists
Mar. 19, 2006: Lakers 95, Cavaliers 96 (Kobe 3 - LeBron 2)
Kobe: 38 pts (.455), 6 rebounds, 5 assists
LeBron: 29 pts (.417), 8 rebounds, 7 assists
Feb. 11, 2007: Lakers 90, Cavaliers 99 (Kobe 3 - LeBron 3)
Kobe: 36 pts (.500), 7 rebounds, 6 assists
LeBron: 18 pts (.313), 8 rebounds, 5 assists
Feb. 15, 2007: Cavaliers 114, Lakers 108 (Kobe 3 - LeBron 4)
Kobe: 34 pts (.409), 6 rebounds, 5 assists
LeBron: 38 pts (.625), 4 rebounds, 3 assists
Dec. 20, 2007: Lakers 90, Cavaliers 94 (Kobe 3 - LeBron 5)
Kobe: 21 pts (.364), 5 rebounds, 5 assists
LeBron: 33 pts (.414), 10 rebounds, 5 assists
Jan. 27, 2008: Cavaliers 98, Lakers 95 (Kobe 3 - LeBron 6)
Kobe: 33 pts (.476), 12 rebounds, 6 assists
LeBron: 41 pts (.500), 9 rebounds, 4 assists
Jan. 19, 2009: Cavaliers 88, Lakers 105 (Kobe 4 - LeBron 6)
Kobe: 20 pts (.409), 6 rebounds, 12 assists
LeBron: 23 pts (.360), 9 rebounds, 4 assists
Feb. 8, 2009: Lakers 101, Cavaliers 91 (Kobe 5 - LeBron 6)
Kobe: 19 pts (.471), 3 rebounds, 2 assists
LeBron: 16 pts (.250), 8 rebounds, 12 assists
Dec. 25, 2009: Cavaliers 102, Lakers 87 (Kobe 5 - LeBron 7)
Kobe: 35 pts (.333), 10 rebounds, 8 assists
LeBron: 26 pts (.474), 4 rebounds, 9 assists
Jan. 21, 2010: Lakers 87, Cavaliers 93 (Kobe 5 - LeBron 8)
Kobe: 31 pts (.387), 2 rebounds, 4 assists
LeBron: 37 pts (.520), 5 rebounds, 9 assists
Dec. 25, 2010: Heat 96, Lakers 80 (Kobe 5 - LeBron 9)
Kobe: 17 pts (.375), 6 rebounds, 7 assists
LeBron: 27 pts (.571), 11 rebounds, 10 assists
