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LeBron James Embraces Nick Wright Amid Feud With Stephen A. Smith

A different sideline interaction than the last one James had with high-profile pundit.

Kyle Koster

Nick Wright and LeBron James after a game.
Nick Wright and LeBron James after a game. / @NBAshane
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Every week is an eventful week in the life of LeBron James but the last one was especially busy thanks to a late-season playoff push and a feud with Stephen A. Smith that simply will not be allowed to resolve on its own volition. By now you've probably read every single tick-tock and blow-by-blow account of the war of words taking place between one of the greatest basketball players of all time and one of the greatest on-screen orators in ESPN history.

But it's not like that with every high-profile pundit. Those who consistently bask in James's excellence do not have to deal with the drama. They are, in fact, literally welcomed into his audience with a warm embrace.

Such was the case with Fox Sports' Nick Wright, who received a nice hug from James after the Los Angeles Lakers' victory over the Memphis Grizziles on Saturday night.

See, that's nice. Especially now knowing these meet-and-greets can go in an entirely different direction. Wright has once again parlayed the very obvious stance that James is an incredible player worth being mentioned in the same breath as Michael Jordan to great success. Everyone else is just mad they didn't think of it first.

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Kyle Koster
KYLE KOSTER

Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.

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