Social Media Reacts to NBA Referee Eric Lewis' Sudden Retirement Amid Probe

Veteran NBA referee Eric Lewis is retiring, effective immediately, and the league is ending its investigation into his social media activity, the NBA said in a release on Wednesday.

Lewis was under investigation for allegedly using an unauthorized burner account on X, formerly known as Twitter. During the NBA playoffs in late May, social media users pointed out a since-deleted account with the handle "@CuttliffBlair" that frequently defended Lewis and other NBA officials. The NBA launched a probe into the matter to determine whether Lewis violated a league rule that prohibits referees from commenting publicly on officiating matters without approval.

It had not been determined if Lewis was in control of the account. The NBA now considers the matter closed, according to its Wednesday release.

Newsweek reached out to the NBA and Lewis for additional comment.

Lewis, 52, was in his 19th season as an NBA referee. The longtime official had worked more than 1,200 games during his career. Amid the investigation, Lewis was not selected as one of the 12 referees to work the 2023 NBA Finals between the Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat. Lewis had worked the previous four Finals matchups.

The last game Lewis worked was Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on May 16. Reports of Lewis' alleged posts came shortly after.

Social media users had plenty of thoughts on Lewis' retirement. Here are some notable ones.

Lakers Fans React to Lewis' Retirement

Lewis has a history of upsetting Lakers fans with calls. And upsetting actual Lakers, too.

When news first broke that Lewis was being investigated, a pair of Lakers players weighed in, including The King. LeBron James and Patrick Beverly both reacted to the investigation on X, formerly Twitter, in May. James was trying to determine if the news was accurate, while Beverly recalled a viral moment from the regular season.

Beverly received a technical foul after taking a photographer's camera and showing it to Lewis after what the guard perceived to be a missed call in a game against the Boston Celtics.

Neither player has publicly reacted to Wednesday's news, but Lakers fans sure have.

Several fans of the purple and gold have posted memes, jokes, and more on X in the aftermath of Lewis' announcement. A frequent joke was posting James celebrating alongside the news that Lewis was retiring.

Other users pointed to some of the most notable officiating moments of Lewis' career, including the no-call involving James that preceded the Beverly camera incident.

The National Basketball Referees Association would later say that James was fouled on the last play of regulation in that Lakers game against the Celtics and that a foul should have been called.

"Like everyone else, referees make mistakes," the union said on what was then Twitter. "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."