BryantBy being named MVP in front of his hometown fans, Kobe Bryant (37 points, 14 rebounds) matched Bob Pettit for the most All-Star MVP awards with four. It's also the sixth time since the merger that a player was named MVP in his home city, and the second time it's happened in Los Angeles. Like Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal won the award in 2004 in Los Angeles as a member of the Lakers.
Bryant's Western Conference teammate Kevin Durant scored 34 points. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this was only the second time that teammates scored at least 30 points in an All-Star Game. The other instance was in 1977, when Bob McAdoo and Julius Erving each had 30 for the Eastern Conference.
30-Point, 10-Rebound Game
All-Star Game History
It was Bryant's first double-double in an All-Star Game, and the fifth 30-point, 10-rebound game in All-Star Game history.
Bryant did most of his damage close to the basket. He was 11-of-14 inside of five feet, and just 3-of-12 outside of that range.
Bryant now has 244 career points in his 12 All-Star appearances. Only Michael Jordan (262) and Kareem-Abdul Jabbar (251) have scored more. Bryant also had three steals, giving him 33, second in All-Star history to Jordan's 37.
In the loss, LeBron James (29 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists) became the second player with a triple-double in an All-Star Game. The only other player with a triple-double is, you guessed it, Michael Jordan. MJ had 14 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in the 1997 game.
Like James, Jordan was not the MVP of that game. In 1997, Glen Rice won the award, scoring 20 of his game-high 26 points in the third quarter.
James has now scored 20 or more points in each of his past six All-Star games, the longest such streak for any player in NBA history according to the Elias Sports Bureau.