LeBron James reacts to NBA investigating referee Eric Lewis' burner Twitter account
With the NBA Playoffs coming to a close, there are all kinds of storylines circulating the association right now. However, while officiating is a big talking point, one particular referee, Eric Lewis, has caught the league’s attention for a whole different reason.
The NBA is reportedly looking into Lewis based on a burner account on Twitter that was connected to the veteran official who has put in nearly two decades on the hardwood. It has become such a big story now that The King himself, LeBron James, had to get to the bottom of it with a tweet of his own.
According to ESPN, Lewis’ alleged account was under the username of ‘Blair Cuttliff’ and owned the handle of ‘@CuttliffBlair.’ At this point, though, the account has seemingly been deleted.
This is something the NBA will be taking seriously considering their rules. Without authorization, the league does not allow their officials to make public statements on officiating. While the account’s tweets were all in defense of Lewis and his fellow referees, this scenario would still fall into that category.
James sharing his thoughts on the matter reflects just how big the investigation around Lewis has become. We’ll have to wait and see where it leads, though, as the NBA continues their investigation of him moving forward.
LeBron James expected to return to the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James is expected to return for his 21st NBA season in 2023-24, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
James, 38, flirted with the idea of retirement immediately following Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals Monday in which the Denver Nuggets finished off a sweep of the Lakers.
“Going forward with the game of basketball, I’ve got a lot to think about,” James told reporters.
James is under contract for the 2023-24 campaign as part of the two-year, $97 million deal he signed last August. He has a player option for the following season worth $50.4 million. The four-time NBA champion and 19-time All-Star had one of his best seasons to date in 2022-23. James put up averages of 28.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 6.8 assists per game.
James played in all 17 of Los Angeles’ playoff games despite still nursing the right foot injury which caused him to miss a month of action late in the regular season. Shams Charania of The Athletic revealed Thursday that James played through a torn tendon which could require surgery this offseason.
James admitted the injury affected his play down the stretch.
“I knew I could get to the finish line,” James said. “Obviously, I knew I had to deal with it and deal with the pain or deal with not being able to be myself before the injury, but there was nothing that made me feel like I couldn’t get to the finish line.”