The latest chapter of duels between LeBron James and Kevin Durant goes to The King, though the Slim Reaper gave him a heck of a fight as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Phoenix Suns 100-95.

The last time James and Durant played was on Christmas Day in 2018. In their latest matchup, with no Devin Booker or Bradley Beal, Durant had a massive workload to carry. He individually dominated to the tune of 39 points and 11 boards on 14-28 shooting, though he also had eight turnovers. Anthony Davis had 30 points for the Lakers while James tallied 21 points, nine assists and eight rebounds in a game that went down to the wire.

James and Durant have been billed as rivals for a long time now, dating as far back as the 2012 NBA Finals. Both players know what it's like to win a championship over the other. They have each multiple different stops in their respective NBA journeys since James' Miami Heat superteam defeated Durant and the upstart Oklahoma City Thunder. The intensity has been palpable throughout their on-court battles but so has the respect.

After the game, Durant talked about his relationship with James and how his greatness can be used as motivation for players across the basketball landscape.

“It's like a barometer,” Durant said. “Just look at his box score after my games a lot my whole career, see what he did, watching highlights. We got close when I was a senior in high school and he was [in his] third or fourth year in the league and he was dominating.

Durant continued by saying that James is “somebody that inspired me as I was coming into college, into the league to want to play at that level. Somebody you could just compare yourself to and if you can accomplish and achieve some of the stuff he's done, that means you're doing pretty solid for yourself. It's just a baseline for you as a player to see how great you can be and he's set that example for everybody in the league.”

LeBron James and Kevin Durant have spent over a decade sparring for supremacy on the hardwood. With the Suns and Lakers each looking to secure a championship, they will continue to see and hear about each other on their respective journeys.