When: 10:30 p.m.

Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles.

TV/radio: TNT; WTAM AM/1100.

El Segundo, Calif. - The corners of Kobe Bryant's mouth curled into a smirk as he shook his head and let out a semi-annoyed exhale.

Lakers practice was over Sunday afternoon, and his hometown Philadelphia Eagles were locked in a battle with the Arizona Cardinals for a Super Bowl berth and he wanted to be watching. Not to mention the Lakers were coming off back-to-back narrow losses.

So he wasn't really interested in talking about his sure-to-be-hyped matchup with LeBron James and the Cavaliers tonight at Staples Center.

"Just leave me alone about this stuff," Bryant said. "I'm dragging my feet coming over here because I could've answered the questions before [the media] asked them."

It is understandable Bryant doesn't want to get into the rhetoric. Neither did James, who skipped talking about the game altogether before the Cavs boarded their jet to head west for the start of a four-game road trip.

It is also understandable because for all the comparisons between the two and the guaranteed national television dates set up around their meetings, it simply hasn't been much of a rivalry.

At least, not quite yet.

In his first two seasons in the NBA, James only played one complete game against Bryant because of injury issues. The next three years mostly saw the Cavs control the matchup, having won the past five against Lakers. The only loss came in 2006, when James missed what could've been a winning jumper at the buzzer in Los Angeles.

At this point in their careers, both seem to be worried about things other than personal rivalries. Both James and Bryant experienced the sting of losing in the NBA Finals over the past two seasons.

Both are attempting to get their teams through rough times with injuries this season after both teams got off to incredible starts.

The Cavs are without starters Delonte West and Zydrunas Ilgauskas; the Lakers have been missing guards Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic, and just got core players Lamar Odom and Luke Walton back from injuries.

Then there was that Sunday afternoon 51 weeks ago in L.A. where James and Bryant created a memorable duel in their most recent meeting as opponents.

James scored 41 points with nine rebounds and four assists in leading the Cavs to a 98-95 victory. Bryant had 33 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. The stat lines didn't create the memories, it was seeing James and Bryant vigorously defend each other in the fourth quarter.

Though there have been spurts where they've faced off in seasons past, that was truly the first time they'd been so dedicated. Down the stretch in that game, James got the better of Bryant. He twice denied Bryant open looks then nailed a step-back jumper over Bryant for the winning points in the final seconds. In all, Bryant went just 1-of-6 shooting with James on him in the fourth quarter.

It could turn into the foundation of what many fans clamor for, which is a true intense rivalry. For Bryant's part, he'd like another shot at it. He said he'll look forward to the defensive assignment tonight. James has been playing the best defense of his career this season and will again draw Bryant in crunch time.

"Kobe's wanted to guard LeBron more, we just haven't always allowed him," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said.

If nothing else, Bryant and James have somewhat of a personal relationship, which was nonexistent a couple of years ago. There was interest in how the two of them would get along the past two summers playing for Team USA because both have strong personalities and James was the established captain of the team when Bryant came aboard in 2007.

But there were barely any issues, and the two developed some chemistry on the floor in the gold-medal run. James didn't seem to be as in tune with Bryant as he was with closer friends Jason Kidd and Carmelo Anthony, but they were the faces of Team USA and neither disappointed.

"In the Olympics, it was a chance to interact, he and I," Bryant said. "It was good for us, just to get to know each other. I think the world of him, playing with him and seeing his work ethic and seeing what he's about."

And that's about as much as Bryant preferred to reveal. The rest, apparently, will have to be developed on the floor.

"You got a guy like LeBron going head to head for the first time after they won the gold medal together, it should be big news," Cavs coach Mike Brown said Sunday. "As a fan . . . that's your dream. But as a coach, you know, and I'm sure coach Jackson knows, there's a good chance Kobe's not going to beat our starting five. Same with LeBron."

Plain Dealer reporter Mary Schmitt Boyer contributed to this report.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: bwindhorst@plaind.com, 216-999-5166