The bridges are burned between Mark Williams and the Lakers.
Williams, a Laker for a hot minute this year before the franchise nixed the deal due to medical concerns, gloated after the Timberwolves eliminated the Lakers in Game 5 of their first-round series Wednesday.
“🙂,” Williams tweeted, letting the emoji do the talking for him.
He also posted to his Instagram Story an image of the popular meme featuring a man who claimed to be at an enemy’s funeral just to make sure his rival had truly died.
Williams gloating after the Lakers’ loss. @MarkWilliams/instagram
Mark Williams dunking during a March 2025 game. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectIt’s understandable why Williams is salty since the Lakers’ decision cost him the chance to compete for a championship and instead stay with the always-terrible Hornets.
After acquiring Luka Doncic from the Mavericks, the Lakers lined up a deal with Charlotte to acquire Williams and provide much-needed size.
Three days after agreeing to the deal, Los Angeles backed out due to a failed physical.
The development stunned Williams.
“My agent told me,” Williams said in February, according to the Charlotte Observer. “I didn’t think I had failed my physical. That didn’t even cross my mind. The night I got traded I played hella minutes. I didn’t think in any world that was possible. Since I’ve been back since the start of the year, I’ve played games with a lot of minutes. I feel like every injury I’ve had has been well-documented and I’ve recovered and been 100 percent since. So, I don’t know what went into that decision. I think that’s up to them.”
LeBron and the Lakers are done. APThe Lakers still grabbed the No. 3 seed without Williams but they sure could have used a big man Wednesday when they allowed the normally defensive-minded Rudy Gobert to morph into Shaq.
Gobert tallied a monster double-double of 27 points and 24 rebounds to lead the Timberwolves to a 103-96 win that now makes LeBron James’ future a storyline to discuss.
Williams, 23, averaged 15.3 points and 10.2 rebounds this season and could have potentially limited Gobert in a pivotal Game 5, but the concern with the big man has always been his availability.
Health has always been a concern with Mark Williams. NBAE via Getty ImagesHe played in 21 of the 30 games remaining for the lottery-bound Hornets after the deal fell through. And in his career, he’s appeared in just 106 of a potential 246 career regular-season games.
Dalton Knecht, the sharpshooting rookie who was the main piece going back to Charlotte in the trade, was a non-factor against Minnesota.
Knecht appeared in two games for a total of three minutes as the Lakers unraveled due to depth issues.






