The Los Angeles Lakers got several key players back from injury, including LeBron James and Rui Hachimura, on Saturday evening vs the Chicago Bulls, but that wasn't enough to prevent a 31-point home loss to Chicago. In what was arguably their worst overall performance of the season, the Lakers got behind the eight ball early in this one and were never able to fully recover.
On Sunday, the Lakers got a brief opportunity for some comic relief when the UConn men's basketball team was eliminated by the Florida Gators in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. UConn of course is coached by Dan Hurley, who briefly flirted with the Lakers' head coaching vacancy this past offseason before opting to return to college basketball, opening the door for the Lakers to eventually sign JJ Redick to the position.
Needless to say, fans on X, formerly Twitter, were having a field day with Hurley and the Huskies' loss.
One fan referenced an infamous meme, signifying UConn's “funeral.”
“Shout out to Dan Hurley for turning down the Lakers job so he could win a single NCAA tourney game,” wrote another.
Of course, UConn had won the previous two NCAA championships before Sunday's loss, so it wasn't exactly a career-altering setback for Hurley. Still, Lakers fans will take wins when they can get them after Saturday's alarming performance.
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A rough game for the Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick on the sidelines against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half at Crypto.com Arena.
Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images
Not much of anything went right for the Lakers on Saturday evening. LeBron James had one of his quieter games of the season, and the Lakers surrendered 30-point performances to both Coby White and Matas Buzelis of the Bulls, as well as a triple double from Josh Giddey.
Luka Doncic had an epic first half of this one, scoring 29 points in the first two quarters, but once he cooled off, Los Angeles didn't have nearly enough to keep up with the hot-shooting Bulls.
The Lakers will next hit the floor on Monday night on the road against the Orlando Magic.