WATCH: Alex Ovechkin and LeBron James Share Courtside Moment at Lakers-Wizards Game

Alex Ovechkin was in attendance at the Capital One Arena as the Los Angeles Lakers took on the Washington Wizards.

WATCH: Alex Ovechkin and LeBron James Share Courtside Moment at Lakers-Wizards Game

LeBron James and Alex Ovechkin would dap each other at the courtside (Image via X/@NBA/X/@Ethan_Cadeaux)

🔍 Explore this post with:

ChatGPTPerplexityGrok AIGoogle AI

On Friday, the Washington Wizards took on the Los Angeles Lakers at the Capital One Arena. During this, Alex Ovechkin and LeBron James shared a courtside moment.

A day before, the Washington Capitals ended a 6-game road trip following a 4-3 shootout victory over the Detroit Red Wings and returned home. Ovechkin, the captain of the Capitals, would take to the Capital One Arena on Friday to watch the game between the Lakers and the Wizards.

While sitting at the courtside, the two superstars would greet each other. In a video shared by Ethan Cadeaux, James would dap the hand of Ovechkin while greeting him during the warmups.

The two of them have mutual respect. Last year, when Ovechkin broke the record of Wayne Gretzky for the most points in NHL history, James was one of those who congratulated him.

James picked up 20 points while spending 30 minutes on the court. The Lakers ended up winning 142-111 and improved their record to 29-18 for the season. This turned out to be the Wizards’ 35th loss of the season.

After the game, Ovechkin and James would also exchange jerseys. Capitals forward Aliaksei Protas would also receive a signed jersey from the NBA superstar. Following this interaction, Ovechkin, along with his two sons, Sergei and Ilya, would pose for a photo with James.

Ovechkin is a massive fan of basketball. His mother, Tatyana Ovechkina, is a 2-time Olympic gold medalist basketball player for the Soviet Union. The forward had also previously claimed that Michael Jordan was his favorite NBA star.

Alex Ovechkin had an interesting moment with another Lakers star

Alex Ovechkin had a front row seat at the Los Angeles Lakers-Washington Wizards game on Friday. While he would meet up with LeBron James before and after the game, he had an interesting moment with another Lakers star.

Alex Ovechkin
Alex Ovechkin 9Image via Imago)

The other Lakers star here is Luka Doncic. During the game, the Slovenian guard almost fell into the lap of the Russian international. This happened after the basketball star tried to draw a foul on Wizards players Kyshawn George and Jamir Watkins.

Commentator Chris Miller would laugh off at this incident and expressed that it would be a “very interesting hockey matchup” if the two European stars squared off against each other.

Doncic was the top performer for the Lakers in this win. The 26-year-old had a triple-double by halftime and wrapped up the game 37 points, 13 assists, 11 rebounds and 3 steals.

Capitals GM recently commented on the future of Alex Ovechkin

Last season, Alex Ovechkin turned back the clock as he chased down the record of Wayne Gretzky. With him now being 40, there are questions regarding his future. Recently, the Washington Capitals GM Chris Patrick commented on this.

Alex Ovechkin
Alex Ovechkin (Image via Imago)

Ovechkin was picked No.1 in the 2004 draft by the Capitals. Since then, “The Great Eight” has been part of the Washington-based side.

The veteran is in the final year of his 5-year contract which he signed in 2021. If his contract is not extended, he will become a free agent.

Amidst this, there have been rumors regarding his retirement from the sport. In May 2025, the Capitals sent out an email to season ticket holders that the upcoming season would be his last. The team would later issue a statement and express was inaccurate.

The forward himself would later shut down some rumors regarding him calling it a day on his career this year. In a press conference earlier this month, GM Chris Patrick expressed that they have not got too much into his future after this year.

We talked a little bit just about where the team is, and what he feels we need, and what I feel we need, but it didn’t really get too much into his future outside of this year. I would say, his conversation with me, he seems very focused on just the short-term here, and this team trying to get into the playoffs and have another shot at winning the Stanley Cup. So, yeah. You guys will continue to have to wait.

Chris Patrick told reporters regarding Alex Ovechkin’s future

In 55 games this season, Ovechkin has 46 points (22 goals and 24 assists). He currently sits at 919 goals and 750 assists from 1,546 games.

At his current goal-scoring rate, it would probably take him another couple of years to reach the unprecedented 1,000-goal mark. The question is, will he actually chase that record or call it a day, given his age. Only time will tell.

Also Read: