INDEPENDENCE, Ohio - LeBron James said "I didn't hold up my end of the bargain" to get the Cavaliers to the 2009 NBA Finals and thus forge a matchup against Kobe Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers that the world would've wanted to see.

James let loose a bevy of insight, emotion, memories and adulation Tuesday morning, regarding Bryant's announcement that this season would be the last of his illustrious 20-year career.

There were almost too many anecdotes from James about Bryant, whom now may be called an idol of James' given what the Cavs' superstar said. For Cleveland fans, though, perhaps the most poignant was James' near apology for, or at least his overt expression of regret, for the Cavs failing to reach the Finals to play Bryant's Lakers in 2009, despite winning a franchise-record 66 games during the regular season.

James and the Cavs were bounced in six games by the Orlando Magic, who were in turn dismissed by Bryant's Lakers in five games. Bryant averaged 32.4 points per game en route to being named Finals MVP.

Either James or Bryant have played in every Finals since 2007, but never against one another. They have five regular-season and four Finals MVPs between them.

"I know the world wanted to see it," James said, following the Cavs' morning shootaround in preparation for the evening's home game against Washington. "I wanted it, we wanted it, he held up his end and I didn't hold up my end, and I hate that. I hate that that didn't happen."

James answered the first question about Bryant - asked for his reaction to Bryant's retirement announcement - and spoke for four minutes without pause.

He called it "kind of sad" as he began to wax poetic about Bryant's impact on his own career, recalling the Bryant posters that hung on the wall and time Bryant gave him a pair of shoes to wear in a high school tournament against Carmelo Anthony's Oak Hill Academy.

Bryant, like James in 2003, entered the NBA in 1996 direct from high school.

"I mean, in high school I wore a nappy-ass Afro because of Kobe Bryant, because he wore it," James said. "I wanted to be just like him, man. And I always said my inspiration came from (Michael) Jordan, but I always thought Jordan was so out of this world that I could never get there. Kobe was someone that I just always kind of wanted to be like and play like."

Remember last week, when James could not (or would not) offer a single moment from Reggie Miller's Hall of Fame career that stood out to him?

Bryant memories rolled off James' tongue, as he maneuvered with ease from Bryant's career-high 81-point explosion on Jan. 22, 2006 against Toronto; his 62 points in three quarters against Dallas on Dec. 20, 2005; his game-winning shot from the right elbow in overtime against Phoenix in Game 4 of a first-round series; to James' own first game against Bryant during his rookie season with the Cavs.

"It was someone that I always knew I had to be in the gym," James said, attempting to put into words what Bryant meant to him once he became a pro. "I knew I had to be better because of Kobe Bryant. I knew he was in the gym and I knew he was working on his game. And I knew he was great.

"So every day that I didn't want to work out or every day I felt like I couldn't give more, I always thought of Kobe. Because I knew that he was getting better and I was like, 'Man, if you take a day off, he's going to take advantage of it. You cannot take a day off. You cannot take a day off.' And I used him for my motivation throughout my career because I always knew that he was working on something."

The last time James and Bryant shared the same court was Jan. 15 at the Staples Center, when James scored 36 compared to Bryant's 19 points and 17 assists in Cleveland's 109-102 win.

James, who still tunes into Lakers games on his tablet and watches "Bean" (Bryant's middle name, which James often shouts while watching those games) after Cavs games are finished, said he checked the schedule for when Cleveland and the Lakers meet this season (Feb. 10 at The Q; March 10 in L.A.).

"I think it'll be very emotional and very fun," James said. "Obviously I want to win and he wants to win, too. But some things about that will be much bigger than a win or a loss.

"It won't really make sense next year when you see the Lakers and you don't see Kobe in a uniform. Twenty years, 13 out of my career. It's almost half of my life I've seen him in a Lakers uniform as a professional. It's going to be pretty weird."

James and Bryant were teammates on two gold-medal Olympic teams. Bryant may still play for Team USA at the Rio Olympics this summer; James said Bryant's decision wouldn't affect his own on whether or not to make another run at gold.

Bryant will be remembered for his ultra-competitive streak, something James said he gained extra appreciation for during their time together with Team USA.

James ended his session with reporters with the following Olympic anecdotes to make his point.

"I would say our Gold Medal game in '08 against Spain was probably one of the most memorable games I've ever played with him," James recalled. "That was a really tough game for our team. It was our Redeem Team and late in the game it was a very close game. Rudy Fernandez had just come down and made a really big bucket. They went zone on us and we needed to make a big bucket. We swung it around the horn, Kobe caught it on the left wing and shot a three with no thought about it. Got fouled, four-point play and we put the game away from that point on. That was pretty cool.

"The other game that was very inspiring and at the same time I knew he was on another level was during our first game we played Spain in '08 in the preliminary rounds. The first play of the game he ran through the chest of Pau Gasol and got a flagrant. And Pau Gasol was his teammate with the Lakers. I was like, 'Yeah, this guy is on another level.'

"Yeah. I loved it. I mean, he wasn't my teammate, but I was like, you guys can find that clip and you'll see what I'm talking about. It was one of the first plays of the game. I was like, 'This guy's all about winning and whoever he's playing for or who he's playing with at that point in time. He really forgot Pau was his teammate. Like he really forgot that he was about to see him in like three weeks in L.A. I swear. It was crazy."