Kobe, Dirk laugh off pump fake: 'Just 2 old guys having fun'

Appreciate what happened Friday night: It very well could have been the last time two of the greatest players in NBA history went head-to-head.

Dirk Nowitzki's pump fake on Kobe Bryant caused the latter to jump, allowing the former an easy path for the up-and-under move. Running back down the court, the two smiled at each other.

"Just two old guys having fun," Bryant said, according to ESPN's Baxter Holmes.

"I haven't been able to get to his fadeaway," the Los Angeles Lakers star explained after the Dallas Mavericks' 90-82 win. "So I was timing him up to try and catch him before he gets up high, because he's too damn tall ... so I figured I'd try to catch him."

Nowitzki, who entered the league two years after Bryant in 1998, had a hunch about that.

"He was talking to me and he was kind of sitting on that fadeaway," Nowitzki said. "I was kind of hoping he would."

Officially or otherwise, both players are nearing the end of the NBA road. Nowitzki was born two months before Bryant in 1978. Combined, they have 60,879 career points through Friday; Bryant ranks third all time, Nowitzki seventh.

"I love playing with Dirk," Bryant said. "It's rare that I play against somebody that came up around the same era that I did. It's good to see him."

While the Mavericks won the game, Bryant outscored Nowitzki 19-9. "He looked great today," Nowitzki said. "It's always good to see. He's a legend."