Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James drives around Lakers guard Kobe BryantPAUL RODRIGUEZ,/The Associated Press
Kobe Bryant and LeBron James traded hugs, big shots and verbal jabs all night with warmth and humour. In the waning minutes, they went head-to-head in yet another entertaining duel between two of this generation's greatest talents.
Although LeBron ended up topping his friendly rival again, King James relished what could be one of his final chances to share a court with one of his few true peers.
James scored 36 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers snapped their six-game losing streak with a 109-102 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night despite Bryant's 19 points and career-high 17 assists.
"It's always fun, a pleasure," James said. "It's two of the best competitors this game has probably ever seen, and to be on the same floor with him, somebody I looked up to when I was a child growing up, seeing him go straight from high school to the NBA, it's fun, it's great. I hated him being out of the NBA last year because of injury, and it's fun having him back."
Cleveland had lost nine of 10 before James held off Bryant down the stretch in a scintillating exchange between the basketball icons.
Bryant hit a 3-pointer with 1:54 left and two free throws with 43 seconds to play, cutting Cleveland's lead to 103-99. But James drove past Bryant for an acrobatic layup with 20.9 seconds left, and Bryant missed a jumper that essentially ended it.
Bryant and James embraced again afterward, and even Kobe allowed himself to relish the moment.
"If we were contending for a championship, I'd be my same moody self," Bryant said. "But right now, I tend to have a little more perspective, knowing I really won't get a chance to play against him for much longer. So you want to enjoy it."
Bryant set a career high for assists in his 1,279th regular-season game, playing in his second straight after skipping three of four games to rest his 36-year-old body. He showed off his playmaking skills, but James got the Cavs comfortably ahead while Kobe sat out the start of the fourth quarter under a strict minutes limit.
James and Bryant laughed and joked throughout the game, exchanging good-natured jibes while waiting to check into the game together. James turned 30 last month, while Bryant's season has been defined by his weariness from a 19-year career.
Kobe even had something to say when LeBron spectacularly clanged a dunk attempt off the rim.
"He said, 'That's what old age will get you,"' James said with a laugh. "You start missing dunks when you thought you was up there."
James has won 13 of his last 16 matchups with Kobe since 2006. When Bryant went back to the bench after getting his 15th assist in the third quarter, James took charge of the Cavs' rally to an 11-point lead in the fourth.
"For all of us, those are two all-time greats going at it ... like two prizefighters," Cavs coach David Blatt said. "It's great to see two guys playing the game at that level for so many years and still involving their teammates in the way that they did."
Kyrie Irving added 22 points and Kevin Love scored 17 for the Cavaliers, who moved back to .500 with their first victory since Jan. 2.
On the fourth stop of Cleveland's five-game West Coast trip, James hit four 3-pointers in his second game back from an eight-game absence with an injured right knee.
Jordan Hill scored 20 points in the Lakers' ninth loss in 12 games.
BUCKS 95, KNICKS 79
LONDON – O.J. Mayo scored 22 points, Brandon Knight had 20 points and six steals, and Milwaukee routed New York, extending the Knicks' franchise-record losing streak to 16.
With the Knicks showing why they have lost 26 of 27 games and are an NBA-worst 5-36, the contest was a poor advertisement for the NBA in its annual London game that showcases its brand overseas.
The Knicks missed their first 10 shots – three in a 6-second span – and gave up 14 offensive rebounds, 10 in the first half. The Bucks took a 12-0 lead, were up by 24 in the second quarter and never let New York closer than 11 the rest of the way.
The return of Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire did little to spark New York.
Anthony led the Knicks with 25 points. Stoudemire was scoreless in 8 first-half minutes and didn't play after the break. Anthony missed the previous six games because of a knee problem, and Stoudemire had been sidelined since Dec. 25, also with a knee injury.
ROCKETS 112, THUNDER 101
HOUSTON – James Harden scored 15 of his 31 points in Houston's big first quarter against Oklahoma City.
Harden came just short of a triple-double with 10 assists and nine rebounds. Trevor Ariza added 17 points and four steals for Houston. The Rockets led 40-18 after one and bounced back after a loss to Orlando on Wednesday night that snapped a four-game winning streak.
Kevin Durant had 24 points and 10 rebounds for the Thunder. They have lost three of their last four games.