Keep in mind, though, this is assuming there's a ground link station in that 'tile'

The inter-satellite routing is essential to providing worldwide coverage.

I read at one point they couldn’t deploy the laser communication between satellites because all the components wouldn’t completely burn up on re-entry. Not sure I quite buy that explanation, but I hope they are ultimately able to get it working and deployed.

This is true, but ground stations can be colocated anywhere there’s fiber and power.