NBA curiously drops investigation of Eric Lewis after referee retires

The announcement of the 52-year-old's retirement came only hours after the league released the 2023 preseason schedule and just under eight weeks until the regular season tips off on Oct. 24.

Instead of any sort of conclusion from the NBA's investigation, the matter may now disappear completely as coaches, fans, players and other referees get ready for the new campaign.

Multiple since-deleted messages on X, formerly known as Twitter, from an account with the name "blair cuttliff" were uncovered in late May, and while it was never determined if Lewis was operating the account, some of the posts defended Lewis from criticism, leading to suspicion. After the posts were discovered, the Association opened an investigation into whether Lewis "violated NBA rules by speaking about officiating in an unauthorized manner," per an Associated Press and ESPN report.

The league then announced at the start of June that Lewis wouldn't be working the NBA Finals for the first time in five years, due to the ongoing investigation.

Lewis officiated in the NBA for 19 seasons and worked over 1,200 games. He refereed 82 playoff contests, including six NBA Finals games.

The Daytona Beach, Fla. native got his first NBA Finals experience during the 2019 championship series between the Golden State Warriors and victorious Toronto Raptors.