‘Better than the All-Star Game’

They're supposed to be teammates, but it might as well have been January for Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.

The two rival superstars took over the final moments of Sunday's USA Basketball Blue-White scrimmage, much to the delight of the 15,132 that showed up at the Thomas & Mack Center. Bryant rallied his Blue team to a 105-104 win over James' White squad.

At the end, it looked a lot like a Lakers-Cavaliers game, given the one-on-one antics by Bryant, who had 26 points, and James, who finished with 18.

"Everyone got a chance to see what we'd gone through the last two days," Bryant said of the three-day Las Vegas minicamp, which concluded with the scrimmage. "There's so much talent here. I'm excited to see what happens when we're all together."

Bryant won't have long to wait. Team USA reconvenes at the Andre Agassi Preparatory Academy Aug. 14 for the training camp to prepare for the Aug. 22 to Sept. 2 FIBA Americas Tournament at the Thomas & Mack.

"That was a great game," said Jason Kidd, the New Jersey veteran point guard who helped make it exciting with eight assists. "That was probably better than the All-Star Game."

Nobody was cut following Sunday's scrimmage and managing director Jerry Colangelo said all 17 players have been invited back for the August camp.

"We may have one or two players with family issues who may not be able to make it but everyone has been told to come back Aug. 14," Colangelo said. He would not identify which players may not return.

Sunday's scrimmage, which was played under international rules, was hotly contested from the outset. Though sloppy at times (38 turnovers) and with some players struggling with their shooting (both teams shot 48 percent from the floor and 28 percent from beyond the 3-point arc), the intensity level was high and it grew even higher in the final two minutes.

With Bryant's team trailing 101-98, the Lakers star guard hit a step-back 3-point jumper over James with 1:46 left to tie it at 101. Bryant burned James again, this time with a jumper from the left side with 1:04 to go to put the Blue ahead 103-102,

He committed a mental faux pas with 21.3 seconds remaining when he tried to call a time out. But in international basketball, players can't call time out on the floor. Only the bench can. But the FIBA refs bailed Bryant out by whistling Kidd for a foul.

The Blue team maintained possession and Bryant, going one-on-one yet again, hit a shot from the top of the key over Tayshawn Prince with 6.6 seconds left to give his team the 105-104 lead. He then defended James on the White team's final possession, bumping him as James drove to the basket but not getting whistled for the contact as James' off-balance shot missed the mark as time was expiring.

Kidd was one of the best players on the floor Sunday. He was finding his teammates with great passes and had they shot a higher percentage, he would have easily finished in double-digits in assists.

"He's great," James said of Kidd. "I've just got to run. I just go baseline to baseline and he's going to find me.

"I don't have that luxury back on my team in Cleveland, but it's a treat here. I'm going to be sad when it's over and I have to go back without him. I've said it many times, he's the best point guard in the NBA."

Coach Mike Krzyzewski said he was pleased with the effort and he liked the way the new additions, particularly Kevin Durant and Deron Williams, performed.

"All the guys we added showed good things,"

Krzyzewski said, "We put Deron on the zone team and he felt real comfortable running the team. Kevin looked comfortable too."

Williams had six points, five rebounds and nine assists in 30 minutes but also had five turnovers. Durant made a case for sticking around next month with 22 points on 9-for-14 shooting. He also had six rebounds and three steals.

Yet another newcomer, Memphis' Mike Miller, made five 3-pointers and finished with 22 points.

"We're really pleased," Krzyzewski said. "The minicamp went better than we expected I think because of all the veterans we brought in. They played that game very hard, and we need to build on that when we come back here in a few weeks."

* NOTES -- Carmelo Anthony led all scorers with 28 points for the Blue team. ... Chris Bosh had a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds for the White squad. ... Injured Team USA members Shawn Marion, Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul attended Sunday's scrimmage.