Denzel Washington is such a baller. On and off the court. Case in point: the brilliant show of affection he and LeBron James shared courtside last night.
The interaction, which was caught on video by a fan, began with the Training Day actor leaving his courtside seat and walking across the baseline of the court as the Lakers were warming up for their matchup against the 76ers at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
Making his way over to James, who was derobing on the Lakers' bench, Washington ignored cheers from the video's filmer -- "Let's go, Denzel!" -- and beelined over to James. Once the actor reached the basketball superstar, he held out his hand for a shake, then the two embraced, and they became just two kings showing each other some love.
LOL I was like where is Denzel going 😠@KingJamespic.twitter.com/gYPln2XQdK
— Asaad (@asaadkamal) February 6, 2026
Sure enough, the video quickly went viral.
The encounter was brief, with the two sharing a few words, before Washington turns and starts the return to his seat. But the display of respect lives on. Fans still can't get enough of the scene.
Per Newsweek, one X commenter said, "Only Denzel can do some s*** like this lol!!" with another posting, "That had to have been planned.. who can just walk up to bron like that?" Another commenter focused on the love, posting, "Denzel still showing love like it's 2010. Real ones recognize real ones."
Lakers fans had plenty to cheer about as James led his team to a 119–115 victory, per the New York Post - and moviegoers have reason to celebrate, too, with Washington's next big move coming in the form of Black Panther 3.
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