Kobe Bryant and LeBron James squared off for the final time on Thursday night as James led the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 120-108 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
The final matchup between the two did not disappoint as Kobe and LeBron went at each other all night. Both also stayed true to themselves as Kobe outscored James, while James had more of an all-around performance.
All great NBA players are competitors and facing off against the league’s other top players usually brings out the best in them and Kobe’s massive competitiveness always forces his opponents to raise their game. That is something James enjoys and according to ESPN’s Rachel Nichols, he wishes he could face Kobe every night:
LeBron on Kobe: "I wish I could play against him every single night."
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) March 11, 2016
The fans would surely like that as well as Kobe and LeBron seemingly brought out the best in one another. The final game between these two was one of the more entertaining performances of the year for the Lakers and even though they lost, fans still left feeling excited and satisfied.
It is truly one of the league’s biggest disappointments that these two never met in the NBA Finals as seeing those two square off on the league’s biggest stage would have been amazing. While some still don’t consider it a rivalry, it is still sad that fans will never get to enjoy this matchup again.