Welp, that’s the title of 2023. But it’s true, the NBA is investigating a reference who has a Twitter account.
NBA referee Eric Lewis is facing an investigation by the league over his alleged use of an incendiary social media account to defend himself against strangers. The account, which has been named “Blair Cuttliff” and has since been deleted, caught the attention of fans for its propensity to defend Lewis and other NBA officials. If the account is already linked to Louis, he could face disciplinary action. The concern stems from a league rule that bars referees from commenting publicly on an appointment without prior permission.
NBA reference Eric Lewis has been revealed to have a burner account (@tweet). Lmaooo this is a very important day. The account will definitely be deleted soon, for the archives, and all the account replies. It all includes… yeah, Eric Lewis. 😂
(free @tweet) thread 🧵⬇️ pic.twitter.com/6GTvURouOc
– Pablo Escoburner (blue tick) (@PabloEscoburner) May 25, 2023
Not Lewis’ first disagreement
In addition to the burner account issue, Lewis found himself in another social media controversy when an old photo of his family in Boston Celtics jerseys surfaced on Twitter. This raised questions about the Celtics’ unusually high winning percentage in games managed by Lewis, with the team winning more than 60 percent of the time.
One notable incident Lewis was involved in this season was when he issued a technical foul against then-Los Angeles Lakers guard Patrick Beverly, who grabbed the photographer’s camera to show Lewis evidence of a missed call. The burner account in question had a particular focus on defending Lewis against Lakers fans.
He laughed at me when I held the camera 📷 yeah a little bit
– Patrick Beverly (@patbev21) May 27, 2023
King James weighs in
Beverly and Beverly’s former Lakers teammate LeBron James spoke about the news surrounding Lewis. Lakers star LeBron James took to Twitter with a “raise an eyebrow” emoji, indicating that he’s skeptical of the allegations.
This is Eric Lewis 💩 right??? 🤨
– LeBron James (@KingJames) May 27, 2023
Lewis, who is currently in his 19th season as an NBA referee, has officiated over 1,098 regular season games and 82 playoff games in his career. The NBA has strict rules that prevent umpires from commenting publicly on the designation without prior permission, and if it is determined that Lewis posted the tweets from a burner account, he could face disciplinary action. Reportedly, the university is unhappy with the situation and has launched an official investigation into the matter.