Lakers' Christian Wood Says Cryptic 'Lol' Social Media Post Was Unintentional

Los Angeles Lakers center Christian Wood said his cryptic post on X, formerly known as Twitter, was merely a misunderstanding.

The post came soon after head coach Darvin Ham announced the starting lineup for Tuesday's game against the Atlanta Hawks, with Jaxson Hayes getting the nod over Wood since Anthony Davis was out with hip and Achilles injuries.

Speaking to reporters after the game, Wood said he was intending to "quote (tweet) something" else.

"I thought I did and I just pressed send," he explained, "and I couldn't check my phone before because we have to go out (to the court), but it was an accident. … I looked at it just now. … It came off a certain type of way. I didn't mean it that way. Not basketball related. Definitely not basketball related."

While Wood's post may have been an accident, it's safe to assume things are getting tense for the Lakers. Since their dramatic double-overtime win over the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night, they have lost back-to-back games.

Tuesday was a low point for the Lakers, who lost 138-122 to a Hawks team that entered the day with a 19-27 record. LeBron James' social media activity could certainly be read as a message to the organization.

Hayes was presumably in the starting five on Tuesday night because of his defensive upside. He had four steals and one block in a season-high 24 minutes, but it didn't make much of a difference in the game.

Wood played 22 minutes off the bench, his most in a game since Jan. 13. He scored nine points on 4-of-7 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds.

The Lakers have used 13 different starting lineups in 49 games this season. Their 24-25 record is tied with the Utah Jazz for ninth in the Western Conference.

Things don't figure to get any easier for the Lakers the rest of this week with road games against the Boston Celtics on Thursday and New York Knicks on Saturday.