In the wake of social media allegations that picked up enough traction to even draw the notice of LeBron James, the NBA is investigating whether or not referee Eric Lewis actually ran a burner Twitter account that defended him to fans online. As that investigation continues, the league is saying that Lewis will be held out from officiating the NBA Finals.
As Marc Stein reported in his Substack, this is the first time in five seasons that Lewis — who has been refereeing NBA games since 2004 — will not officiate a single game of the league’s championship series (emphasis mine):
The NBA made it official Thursday and announced that referee Eric Lewis, for the first time in five years, will not officiate in these NBA Finals while the league investigates a Twitter account that has frequently posted about Lewis for nearly eight years.