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The NBA announced on Wednesday the surprise retirement of veteran referee Eric Lewis, who's under investigation for the alleged use of a burner account. Lewis was an official for 19 years and called four straight NBA Finals from 2019 to 2022.
Lewis was not selected to officiate the 2023 NBA Finals because he was under investigation by the league. With his retirement, the NBA closed the inquiry and is moving on from the ordeal, so what did Lewis do with his burner account on X, formerly known as Twitter?
In the video below, the account with the name Blair Cuttliff was defending Lewis and other NBA officials from fans. The league was investigating whether Lewis violated a rule that prevents referees from discussing calls in a public setting without the NBA's approval.
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The alleged burner account was later deleted with its last reply claiming that he was the older brother of Eric Lewis named Mark.
"Pablo, This is MARK Lewis," the account wrote. "Right family (older brother). I'm sorry that I put E, in this situation, but this ain't Watergate. You're right, the account WILL be coming down. Twitter should not be this vindictive. Sorry to inconvenience you." [H/T Bleacher Report]
Burner accounts have been an issue in the past for several personalities in the NBA. Kevin Durant was caught using one but later began acknowledging using them for fun and to interact with fans.
Former Philadelphia 76ers general manager Bryan Colangelo was fired for using burner accounts. Colangelo had five burner accounts linked to him, three of which were created by his wife, Barbara Bottini.
Colangelo didn't disclose any team information from his burner accounts, but his wife did. The burner accounts also disparage former Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie, and players such as Jahlil Okafor and Joel Embiid.
Eric Lewis' NBA officiating career
Eric Lewis has officiated more than 1,200 games, regular season and playoffs, in his 19-year career as an NBA referee. Lewis began working in the NBA in 2005 after three years as an official for the NBA G League.
Just like many league officials, Lewis went through the grind and started from the ground up. He refereed high school basketball games for six years in Florida before moving to the college level.
He was a college official for eight years before moving to the United States Basketball League for two years.
Lewis was born and raised in Daytona Beach, Florida. He played high school basketball for Mainland High School and suited up for Bethune Cookman College.
