NBA Twitter Burner saga: What's the Eric Lewis dispute and how did LeBron James react?

An NBA referee in making headlines in the past few days after being caught with a Twitter burner account to defend his calls to Lakers fans. So much so that, LeBron James himself took to his Twitter account to inquire about the reports on Saturday night, but ended up triggering a massive response by fans. Fans not keeping in touch with the offseason action put forward questions like “Who is Eric Lewis?”.

This Eric Lewis 💩 true??? 🤨

— LeBron James (@KingJames)

Who is Eric Lewis? All you need to know about the controversial referee

Eric Lewis is a 52-year-old NBA official, who has been refereeing career since 2004, and found himself in the spotlight among Lakers fans. His controversial no-call on a potential go-ahead basket by LeBron James during a game against the Boston Celtics stirred headlines. Notably, this game also saw Patrick Beverley receiving a technical foul for showing Lewis a photo of the missed call captured by the team photographer's camera between regulation and overtime, as reported by SB Nation. The incident left a lasting impression and sparked discussions within the basketball community.

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As the events unfolded, Lewis openly acknowledged that his officiating team had made an incorrect no-call in real-time. The NBA, in their Last Two Minute Report the following day, confirmed the error. “Like everyone else, referees make mistakes. We made one at the end of last night’s game and that is gut-wrenching for us. This play will weigh heavily and cause sleepless nights as we strive to be the best referees we can be,” a tweet by the NBA referees' Twitter handle read. 

Will the NBA punish Eric Lewis? 

Presently, the focus of the controversy surrounding Eric Lewis revolves around allegations of favoritism towards the Celtics. SB Nation reported that a Twitter user discovered purported evidence suggesting that Lewis engaged in anonymous arguments with the Lakers fans through a burner account on social media. Although the account was initially deactivated, it resurfaced later, asserting that it belonged to Lewis' older brother, Mark. These revelations have intensified the discussion surrounding Lewis' impartiality and raised questions about potential conflicts of interest.

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The NBA has reportedly launched an investigation into the recent Twitter activity by Lewis and it will be interesting to see whether Lewis faces any disciplinary action for if he broke any NBA rules with his tweet.