LEBRON_JAMES_PAUL_PIERCE.JPG

LeBron James believes that Paul Pierce is the closest thing he has to an individual rival.

(AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

LeBron James could have called Kevin Durant his greatest rival. It would make sense because Durant comes closer than anyone else to James' brilliance at this time. They work out together during the offseason and met in the 2012 NBA Finals. Durant has said he measures himself against James and doesn't want to remain second-fiddle forever.

James could have called Kobe Bryant his greatest rival. Historically speaking, Bryant has accomplished more than James. Looking years down the road, it's the Los Angeles Laker (among others) who James will look to pass. James is performing better now than Bryant ever did during his career (here comes the hate mail from Bryant fans, but it's true), yet longevity counts and so do titles, so James still has more to accomplish.

When asked by NBA TV's Ahmad Rashad about the subject recently, though, the league MVP said he does not consider Bryant his top rival. He did not mention Durant, either.

"I would say that I don't really have an individual rivalry. I think the closest would be Paul Pierce," James said. "I would say Boston is a rival of mine because I've met them so many times in the postseason. I've been able to advance against them, they've sent me home fishing a few times. So I would say Boston and Paul Pierce would kind of be that guy, if I had to name just one guy."

When thinking about Pierce vs. James, my mind goes straight to Game 7 of the 2008 Eastern Conference Semifinals. The two stars have shared the court many other times, but in any discussion of their rivalry, that game should leap to the forefront. James was dominant. He scored 45 points against the Celtics defense, which was one of the greatest ever. Yet Pierce scored 41, including two free throws with 7.9 seconds remaining to ice the 97-92 victory. Boston went on to win the NBA title, but James brought the Celtics closer to elimination than anyone else.

The AP recap of the game started, "Paul Pierce hit a shot. Then LeBron James answered. Pierce hit another and so did James. It was like that all game long, two of the NBA's best trying to carry their teams to the next round."

Despite the loss, James understood the special nature of the duel, referencing the time when Larry Bird and Dominique Wilkins stood toe to toe during a 1988 Game 7.

"I think the second round of the postseason, Game 7, these fans will finally have an opportunity to forget a little bit about what Larry Bird and Dominique Wilkins did," James said, "and remember what Paul and LeBron did."

Last year, before the Heat and Celtics met in the playoffs, ESPN's Brian Windorst wrote a nice story on the history between James and Pierce, reporting that the two actually came close to fighting in the hallway after a preseason game in 2004. "Pierce's teammates had to literally carry him away to prevent an altercation," Windhorst wrote, adding that the two players made peace at the All-Star game later that season.

Now, after meeting each other four times in the playoffs during the six-year Kevin Garnett era (James advanced past Boston twice with the Heat, but lost twice with Cleveland), there seems to be nothing but respect between Pierce and James. Pierce can't match James bucket for bucket anymore, at least on most nights, but the two share mutual admiration after all their hotly-contested matchups over the years.

Many of those came during the postseason, where James believes rivalries are forged. He and Pierce have played 25 playoff games against each other, which the Miami Heat superduperstar suggested was the differentiation between Pierce's rivalry resume and Bryant's.

"When you look at Wilt (Chamberlain) and (Bill) Russell, they met multiple times in the Finals. Same with Magic (Johnson) and (Larry) Bird. Unfortunately, (Bryant and James) never had an opportunity to meet in the Finals," James said. "I think we've had some really good regular season games against one another, but I don't think two games a season -- it's not enough to classify as a rivalry."

(H/T to @MrTrpleDouble10 for finding the video of James' interview.)