The early elimination of the Los Angeles Lakers is one of the key storylines of this 2025 NBA playoffs.
After signing Luka Doncic and offering the biggest and most amazing deal in NBA history, expectations for the LA Lakers were high.
With the Slovenian superstar running the show alongside LeBron James, the Lakers won 50 regular season games, secured the third seed in the Western Conference, solidifying their case as a title contender.
However, when they began the opening round, they were immediately shocked by the gritty Minnesota Timberwolves. The Minnesota Timberwolves beat 4-1 in the series.
The purple and gold fanbase grief regarding the Lakers’ first round exit has been transformed into the happiness of Mark Williams of the Charlotte Hornets Center.
Shortly after the Lakers resigned with the Timberwolves in Game 5, Williams unveils the X-Post with a smiley emoji, enjoying his downfall.
He may have claimed he finally moved about it, but there is no denying that Charlotte Hornets Big still has that malicious intention towards LA after the franchise lost their trade deadline arrival citing a failed medical checkup.
Williams argued that he was healthy and that he might have helped the Lakers fill Anthony Davis’ shoes.
Similar to Austin Rivers’ notion, Patrick Beverly found Williams’ social media reaction to be rather strange and irrational.
“It was strange to me, especially coming from God’s awful team. I didn’t understand it, I really didn’t understand it,” the former NBA star said on his The Pat Bev podcast.
“He was happy they lost, what strange time is it? It’s a strange companion.”
Their first-round defeat against Minnesota completely exposed the lack of internal plays for Los Angeles.
Jaxson Hayes is no longer able to play under the JJ Redick watch, but Alex Len and the rest of the Lakers backup big could not carry the load and helped the team fit the wolf’s impressive frame.
As a result, the Lakers were completely destroyed by the Timberwolves. Especially in Game 5 when Rudy Gortbert feasted on a 24-rebound masterpiece with 27 points.
The Lakers could have used Williams’ size to deal with T-wolves, but they’ll go in a different direction this summer.