Reporting from TORONTO — Someone actually tried to defend Kobe Bryant in his final All-Star game, refusing to step aside and yield one last magical moment. Well, sort of.
LeBron James lightheartedly slapped the court as Bryant dribbled on the perimeter in the second quarter, commencing a one-on-one, bring-it-on battle that ended with Bryant’s turnaround jumper bouncing off the front of the rim. It also resulted in smiles from both players.
“When you get that opportunity versus a great man,” James said, “you just have fun with it.”
Playfulness was as plentiful as points during the NBA’s highest-scoring All-Star game Sunday at the Air Canada Centre, the West’s 196-173 victory making Bryant a winner even though he was far from the best player on the court.
The Lakers star finished with 10 points on four-for-11 shooting to go with seven assists and six rebounds in 26 minutes. He checked out for the last time with 1 minute 6 seconds left, pausing to hug his teammates and wave to the fans before tapping his heart, saluting the crowd and clapping his hands high above his head.
“I had a blast playing with those guys,” Bryant said of his teammates, “laughing and joking with them on the bench.”
This was Bryant’s 15th All-Star game, and the 20-year NBA veteran finished with a record-tying four All-Star most-valuable-player awards and 290 points, the latter figure ranking second all-time after James’ 13 points allowed him to overtake Bryant on the scoring list.
Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook became the first player to be selected MVP outright in back-to-back seasons after collecting 31 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals for the West. Indiana’s Paul George scored 41 points for the East, one short of Wilt Chamberlain’s All-Star game record.
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Thunder guard Russell Westbrook is congratulated by teammate Kevin Durant after winning the All-Star game MVP award.
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Clippers guard Chris Paul collects a pass on a fastbreak before scoring between Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas (3) and Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan (10) in the second half.
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Warriors guard Stephen Curry of the West brings the ball up court against Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas during the second half.
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Bulls center Pau Gasol of the East gets tangled with Kings center DeMarcus Cousins during first-half action.
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Cavaliers forward LeBron James of the East is all smiles as he defends Lakers guard Kobe Bryant of the West during the first half.
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Timberwolves guard Zach LaVine attempts a reverse dunk during the contest Saturday in Toronto.
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Timberwolves guard Zach LaVine and Toronto native Drake check out the score after one of LaVine’s efforts in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest on Saturday.
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Minnesota guard Zach LaVine puts down a reverse dunk during the contest Saturday night in Toronto.
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Magic forward Aaron Gordon throws down a reverse windmill dunk after snatching the ball from the claw of the Magic mascot Saturday.
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Orlando forward Aaron Gordon reacts, along with the Magic’s mascot, after making a reverse windmill dunk on Saturday.
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Minnesota guard Zach LaVine is presented the Slam Dunk Contest winner’s trophy on Saturday in Toronto.
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Golden State guard Klay Thompson takes aim during the Foot Locker Three-Point Contest on Saturday night.
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Warriors point guard Stephen Curry takes a shot during the Three-Point Contest on Saturday. The defending champion would be beaten by teammate Klay Thompson.
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Golden State guard Klay Thompson is congratulated by teammate Stephen Curry after winning the Three-Point Contest on Saturday.
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Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson shares a laugh with Pelicans forward Anthony Davis and Timberwolves forward Karl-Anthony Towns during the Skills Challenge on Saturday.
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Minnesota forward Karl-Anthony Towns weaves his way through the Skills Challenge course on Saturday.
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Timberwolves forward Karl-Anthony Towns holds his Skills Challenge trophy while taking a photo with (from left) Warriors forward Draymond Green, Pelicans forward Anthony Davis and Kings center DeMarcus Cousins.
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Timberwolves teammates Zach LaVine of the U.S. and Andrew Wiggins of the World embrace after the NBA All-Star Rising Stars Challenge on Friday night in Toronto.
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Bucks forward Jabari Parker of the U.S. team after finishing off a dunk against the World team in the Rising Stars Challenge.
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Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell of the U.S. team drives around Nuggets guard Emmanuel Mudiay of the World team during the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday night in Toronto.
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Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson (6) and Timberwolves guard Zach LaVine (8) helped the U.S. team defeat the World team, 157-154, in the Rising Stars Challenge.
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Forward Kristaps Porzingis of the World team is congratulated by Knicks teammate Carmelo Anthony during the first half of the Rising Stars Challenge.
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76ers forward Jahlil Okafor of the U.S. team tries to block a shot by Timberwolves forward Andrew Wigging of the World team during the Rising Stars Challenge.
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Nuggets guard Emmanuel Mudiay (0) and Timberwolves forward Andrew Wiggins (22) celebrate after a score during the Rising Stars Challenge.
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Canada’s Stephan James tries to get a shot off between the United States’ Joel David Moore (22) and Nick Cannon (2) during the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game.
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Kobe Bryant listens to a question from a reporter during his media session Friday at NBA All-Star weekend.
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Lakers guard Kobe Bryant is engulfed by members of the media for his interview session Friday in Toronto.
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San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard fields a question during his NBA All-Star game media session on Friday.
(Larry W. Smith / EPA) All of the defensive battles involving Bryant were warmhearted. Clippers guard Chris Paul’s 7-year-old son got the best of Bryant in warmups before the second half, his active hands swiping the ball as Bryant dribbled low to the floor.
“He probably doesn’t realize it now, because he’s kind of sort of used to seeing Kobe and stuff like that,” Paul said of the moment involving his son, “but when he gets a little older, it’ll probably hit him a little bit.”
Bryant stepped in front of Pau Gasol, his former Lakers teammate, in the fourth quarter, on a play that ended in Gasol’s missed turnaround jumper. Then Bryant backed down Gasol and missed his own turnaround jumper.
“I got a chance to stop Pau in the post, redeem myself from what he did to me when Chicago came to town,” Bryant said. “But all those things are just fun. I had a great time. I had a great, great time.”
Bryant even paid homage of sorts to Lakers great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the third quarter with a baseline skyhook. It didn’t go so well, the ball flying all the way over the rim.
Bryant flung freebies into the stands when he first appeared for warmups, accompanied for a stretch by his oldest daughter. Predictably, he was the last player introduced before the game, with a lengthy pause punctuated by chants of “Kobe!” from the crowd.
Two video tributes were shown, one featuring career highlights and another including footage narrated by Bryant and praise from his basketball peers.
There were also brief addresses by Bryant and Lakers legend Magic Johnson, who told the crowd, “There will never be another Kobe Bryant.”
Bryant ended his address by saying, “Now I have to go get loose.” He won an awkwardly contested jump ball against James and registered his first statistic on an assist to San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard.
Early in the game it was vintage Bryant . . . as in 2016.
His first shot was a three-point attempt off the back of the rim. He made only one of two free throws after being fouled on a driving layup. He even needed some luck on his first basket, which fell through after circling the rim five times.
Ultimately, it was Bryant’s presence, and not his performance, that mattered to those around him.
“To see him now, it’s like the passing of a generation,” said San Antonio Coach Gregg Popovich, who guided the West. “He’s been such an iconic figure for so long, and he passes it on to that other group of young guys that you saw out there tonight.”
ben.bolch@latimes.com
Twitter: @latbbolch
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