The way Saturday Night Live comic Colin Jost sees things, there are similarities between Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the Los Angeles Lakers’ recent struggles on the court.
The Lakers made it into this weekend’s episode of SNL, just as the team scored a Saturday night win against the Golden State Warriors. The victory was much-needed, considering the Lakers have been on a losing streak.
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During SNL‘s “Weekend Update” segment, Jost took a dig at the Lakers and said the team is looking as battered as the Russian army, since President Vladimir Putin sent his troops into Ukraine.
“Some military experts have been surprised that despite having superior firepower, the Russian army has been slowed by aging equipment, poor motivation and inept leadership — so basically, they are the Lakers,” Jost said to laughter.
Just as Jost was dunking on the Lakers, the team clinched a 124-116 victory over the Warriors. The win came thanks to LeBron James — who is 37 years old — scoring 56 points, ending the team’s four-game losing streak.
On a more serious note, the fighting in Ukraine continues and the humanitarian crisis is only getting worse.
On Saturday, the Associated Press reported 1.45 million people have been displaced since Russia launched its unprovoked invasion on Feb. 24. Meanwhile, the U.N. is warning that number could climb to 4 million people if the conflict doesn’t end soon.
Earlier in the day, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made an urgent appeal for fighter jets and other military assistance during a video call with members of Congress.
“A group of us met by Zoom with @ZelenskyyUa. His main ask was for the U.S. to allow Poland and Romania to transfer Soviet era jets to #Ukraine, and for the U.S. to compensate by giving more advanced planes to those two NATO allies,” Rep. Brad Sherman (D-California) tweeted.
