When superstars face off, does it bring out the best in them?

Last night LeBron James and Dwyane Wade seemingly went one on one for the entire game. LeBron scored 42 as his Cavs beat Wade's 41, and his Heat. We've seen it a million times, LeBron vs Kobe, Kobe vs Shaq, LeBron vs Carmelo, Howard vs Wade, and on and on. The games where superstars face off, they tend to go off. In some instances they buckle down defensively, like both games where LeBron and Kobe played each other. Some games are a personal goal to score more than the other like when Shaq and Kobe play, or when two of the top scorers play each other like LeBron and Wade. LeBron last week had an interview with Magic Johnson, LeBron said he looked at Kobe as one of the best in the league, that he watches him on his days off, and observes what he does, because they are both double and triple teamed. So is it any surprise when those two go at it, they want to one up each other? Look at the Madison Square Garden instance. Kobe went out there and scored 61 points, LeBron scored 52 points, and was a rebound short of a triple-double. There is no way anyone can say that none of these superstars go out and constantly try to one up each other. That's what makes the NBA so special, so fun to watch, when these guys go at it, it can be one of the most entertaining things in sports to watch. One of these best performances was last years playoffs, game seven of the Celtics and Cavaliers where LeBron had 45 points and Paul Pierce had 41. It was called "an epic battle" by Celtics executive vice president Danny Ainge, and rightfully so. It is these games, these "epic battles" that are so fun to watch, and with the superstars in the league now, most of whom are capable of 40 point nights every time they step on the court, there could be many of these highlight reel nights to come.