Image Source: X
[Saba Sports News] One NBA player is clearly enjoying the Lakers’ early playoff exit.
The Los Angeles Lakers were officially eliminated on Wednesday night after a 103-96 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of their first-round series at Crypto.com Arena. It marked the second straight year the Lakers failed to advance past the opening round.
Shortly after the loss, Charlotte Hornets center Mark Williams took to X with a timely post: a simple smiley-face emoji. Williams doesn’t post often—fewer than 1,000 times in total—and this was his first update in 10 days, making the timing especially pointed.
Back in February, the Lakers had agreed to a trade with Charlotte to acquire the 23-year-old big man, but ultimately pulled out after raising concerns over his physical. Williams’ camp was reportedly frustrated with how the situation was handled, with his agent publicly criticizing the Lakers and Williams himself expressing shock and disagreement over their decision to nix the deal.
Now, following L.A.’s disappointing playoff showing, Williams appears to be subtly reveling in their downfall. The irony wasn’t lost on anyone either—the Lakers desperately lacked frontcourt size against Minnesota, and Rudy Gobert capitalized in Game 5 with a dominant 27-point, 24-rebound performance.
L.A. was left relying on undersized options like 6’10” Maxi Kleber, 6’8″ Rui Hachimura, and 6’7″ Dorian Finney-Smith to battle in the paint.
For Williams, it was a quiet but unmistakable moment of vindication.