NBA referee Eric Lewis retires; league ends investigation into his alleged use of burner account to defend his work

The NBA announced on Wednesday that referee Eric Lewis has retired and that the league is subsequently closing its investigation into his alleged use of a burner social media account.

Lewis was accused in May of running a burner account defending himself and NBA officials against criticism on the internet. He was a frequent target of criticism by Los Angeles Lakers fans.

The account under the handle @CuttliffBlair has since been deleted. Another social media account compiled a list of the account's posts before it was deleted.

The accusation caught the attention of NBA players including LeBron James and Patrick Beverley, who played for the Lakers at the time. Beverley was involved in a high-profile incident with Lewis where he grabbed a photographer's camera to plead his case for a missed call.

NBA officials are prohibited from commenting publicly on officiating without authorization from the league. Prior to his decision to retire, Lewis faced potential discipline if the NBA determined that the account was his.

Lewis, 52, officiated NBA games for 19 seasons. Per his NBA bio, he worked 1,098 regular season games and 82 playoff games.

There was no public comment from James or Beverley after the news of his retirement.