This article attempts to prove something that doesn't apply to the decentralized networks that the Lightning Network is expected to form, and so its conclusion

This article attempts to prove something that doesn't apply to the decentralized networks that the Lightning Network is expected to form, and so its conclusion that it cannot be decentralized is flawed. It relies on a definition that "decentralized" means "many hops". However the principle of six degrees of separation[1] demonstrates that this is commonly not the case in a typical decentralized network. Social connections are generally treated as "decentralized" but do not require a large number of hops to get across the network. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_degrees_of_separation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_degrees_of_separation