Prior to closing its investigation into referee Eric Lewis‘ social media points, the NBA hadn’t found any indications of inappropriate behavior or issues on the court for Lewis, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today.
The veteran official, who announced his retirement earlier this week, was being investigated due to his possible connection to an anonymous Twitter account that responded to many posts about NBA officiating to defend Lewis and other referees.
League rules prohibit referees from publicly commenting on the officiating without authorization, but even if that Twitter account belonged to Lewis, it doesn’t sound like there’s reason to believe it influenced his behavior on the court at all.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Former Ohio State forward Othello Hunter, who had a brief NBA stint with the Hawks from 2008-10, has announced his retirement as a player, per Eurohoops. Hunter, who is 37, appeared in just 23 regular season NBA games but had a successful career overseas, winning a EuroLeague championship in 2019 with CSKA Moscow, along with multiple titles in Russia, Greece, and Israel.
- In an entertaining feature, Tim Cato of The Athletic explores the work that Larry Coon has done to popularize the NBA’s salary cap and Collective Bargaining Agreement and to explain them to a broader audience. Coon’s CBA FAQ has certainly been an invaluable tool for us at Hoops Rumors, particularly in the development of our glossary.
- Danny Leroux of The Athletic takes an early look at the 2024 free agency landscape, examining the probable cap room teams (Magic, Spurs, Sixers, Wizards, Jazz, and Pistons), the clubs projected to be over the second apron (Suns, Celtics, Nuggets, Clippers) and everyone in between.