The NBA has reportedly launched an investigation right into a Twitter account that customers recommended might be utilized by veteran league referee Eric Lewis, according to NBA reporter Marc Stein.
The account @CuttliffBlair, which has since been scrubbed of its tweets, made rounds on Twitter after person @PabloEscoburner — in a tweet giving a hat tip to fellow person @Mikey_Wyllin — shared over three minutes of display screen recordings that confirmed tweets that criticized customers’ takes and defended Lewis’ officiating abilities.
The person identified that the account adopted NBA and referee-related accounts together with the George Mason College ladies’s basketball group account. The group is coached by Vanessa Blair‑Lewis, Lewis’ spouse.
The account seems to nonetheless be up — and following @PabloEscoburner — as of Sunday morning.
The account later replied to @PabloEscoburner’s Twitter thread and claimed to be “MARK Lewis,” including that they have been Eric Lewis’ older brother.
“I’m sorry that I put E, on this scenario, however this ain’t Watergate. You’re proper, the account WILL be coming down. Twitter shouldn’t be this vindictive. Sorry to inconvenience you,” @CuttliffBlair wrote late Thursday.
“Simply lean into it, bro. No disgrace. 😂,” @PabloEscoburner wrote back.
Lewis, who has been a referee within the NBA for almost 20 seasons, has officiated over 80 playoff video games and 6 NBA Finals video games, according to the National Basketball Referees Association.
In a tweet on Saturday, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James raised his eyebrow on the risk that Eric Lewis might be linked to the account.
James’ former Lakers teammate and now-Chicago Bulls participant Patrick Beverley additionally weighed in on the account, referring to a January sport wherein he grabbed a digital camera in an attempt to show Lewis that he missed a foul.
The transfer earned Beverley a technical foul.
The allegations reminded NBA followers of ex-Philadelphia 76ers government Bryan Colangelo, who resigned from his submit in 2018 after a report from The Ringer tied him to plenty of Twitter burner accounts that criticized former and present gamers on the Philly group.
