5 Greatest Kobe vs. LeBron Moments

3. LeBron Wins The Game, But Kobe Makes History (2010)

In what would be the final matchup between the two before LeBron “took his talents to South Beach” in the summer of 2010, the Cavs and Lakers had their most tightly contested battle yet.

The game came down to the final minutes as James dominated, scoring 12 of the team’s final points down the stretch on his way to 37 points, nine assists, five boards and two steals in a 93-87 win that helped the Cavs to sweep the season series against the Lakers that year.

However, even in victory, James was overshadowed by Bryant.

Despite having a poor shooting night, Bryant poured in 31 points and, more importantly, reached a very special milestone in the second quarter.

At 31 years and 151 days old, Bryant had become the youngest player to reach 25,000 career points, breaking the record previously held by Wilt Chamberlain (31 yrs, 186 days).

Ironically, that record has since been broken by — who else? — LeBron James at 30 years and 307 days of age.

Next: No. 2