By Sunday 
It wasn’t just the Lakers who took an L on Saturday night—LeBron James caught some strays from the internet, too.
In a playoff opener that went from hopeful to hopeless fast, the Los Angeles Lakers were flattened by the Minnesota Timberwolves, 117-95, in front of a stunned Crypto.com Arena crowd. And while the loss itself was rough, the internet response? Even more brutal—and way more viral.
From Playoff Hopefuls to Meme Material
The Lakers actually looked alive in the first quarter, keeping things competitive. But then the Timberwolves hit the gas, outscoring them by 18 in the second quarter alone, and L.A. never recovered.
LeBron posted a decent stat line—19 points on 8-of-18 shooting, five boards, three assists—but “decent” isn’t exactly what Lakers fans were hoping for. Especially not with Luka Doncic on the squad now, who dropped a jaw-dropping 37 points of his own.
In LeBron’s own words postgame:
“Maybe it took us one playoff game to now get a feel for it and know what type of intensity, the type of physicality is going to be brought to the game… we should be more than prepared for that on Tuesday night.”
Prepared or not, the internet wasn’t waiting.
One Post to Roast Them All
While Lakers fans processed the defeat, social media did what it does best: overreact and go viral.
One post, in particular, lit up timelines:
“Just so we are clear if LeBron loses with Luka the legacy takes a huge hit.”
Ouch. That one tweet sent NBA Twitter into a frenzy of memes, side-eyes, and “legacy” debates louder than a Skip Bayless monologue.
It’s the kind of hot take tailor-made to go viral—and it did. Suddenly, the focus wasn’t just on the Lakers’ on-court collapse, but whether this season could reshape how LeBron’s legacy is remembered. Fair or not, the stakes feel sky-high.
Legacy Watch: Is It Panic Time Yet?
Let’s be real—pairing LeBron with Luka was supposed to be a championship cheat code, not a first-round struggle bus. The Lakers went all-in to win now, and the idea of flaming out early is making fans nervous (and meme accounts very busy).
Sure, it’s only Game 1. But as we’ve seen before, when LeBron loses, the internet never lets it go quietly.
Game 2 suddenly feels a lot bigger. Not just for the Lakers’ season—but for the King’s kingdom.
Need more playoff drama, memes, or LeBron think-pieces? Just wait for Tuesday night.