76ers exec bryan colangelo accused of using fake Twitter accounts to bash players, NBA officials
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A Philadelphia 76ers executive may not have been totally trusting the process after all.
Bryan Colangelo, the team’s president of basketball operations, was accused in a report by the Ringer on Tuesday of using fake social media accounts to criticize players on his own team, including Joel Embiid and Markelle Fultz and former players Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel.
The Ringer, citing an unnamed source, reported that five Twitter accounts were marked as suspicious, including one that followed 76ers employees but never tweeted and four that tweeted or replied to other users.
Tweets from those accounts took shots at Embiid’s ego, blamed Fultz’s poor shooting on a former mentor, theorized that Okafor’s failed physical was the reason why a potential trade was nixed and called Noel a “selfish punk,” according to the Ringer.
The accounts also took shots at Toronto Raptors general manager Masai Uijiri, who was an assistant under Colangelo and eventually replaced him. The accounts also ripped former 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie, whose tedious rebuild was dubbed “the process.”
Philadelphia 76ers' Joel Embiid (21) talks to spectators during the second half of the team's NBA basketball game against the New York Knicks in New York. (Associated Press)
The Ringer report pointed out that after 76ers officials were contacted about the suspicious activity, some of the accounts went private -- including one that hadn’t been active since December.
Colangelo, 52, confirmed in a statement to the Ringer that one of the accounts was his.
“Like many of my colleagues in sports, I have used social media as a means to keep up with the news,” the statement said. “While I have never posted anything whatsoever on social media, I have used the @Phila1234567 Twitter account referenced in this story to monitor our industry and other current events. This storyline is disturbing to me on many levels, as I am not familiar with any of the other accounts that have been brought to my attention, nor do I know who is behind them or what their motives may be in using them.”
Embiid also told ESPN that he talked with Colangelo and the executive denied the tweets were from him.
“I talked to him and he said that he didn't say that,” Embiid told ESPN. “He called me just to deny the story. Gotta believe him until proven otherwise. If true, though, that would be really bad.”
Colangelo is a two-time Executive of the Year Award winner and has served as a top executive in NBA front offices with three different teams – the Phoenix Suns, Raptors and 76ers.
His father, Jerry Colangelo, 78, the longtime Phoenix Suns owner, now serves as a 76ers adviser.
Bryan Colangelo, the team’s president of basketball operations, was accused in a report by the Ringer on Tuesday of using fake social media accounts to criticize players on his own team, including Joel Embiid and Markelle Fultz and former players Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel.
The Ringer, citing an unnamed source, reported that five Twitter accounts were marked as suspicious, including one that followed 76ers employees but never tweeted and four that tweeted or replied to other users.
Tweets from those accounts took shots at Embiid’s ego, blamed Fultz’s poor shooting on a former mentor, theorized that Okafor’s failed physical was the reason why a potential trade was nixed and called Noel a “selfish punk,” according to the Ringer.
The accounts also took shots at Toronto Raptors general manager Masai Uijiri, who was an assistant under Colangelo and eventually replaced him. The accounts also ripped former 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie, whose tedious rebuild was dubbed “the process.”
Philadelphia 76ers' Joel Embiid (21) talks to spectators during the second half of the team's NBA basketball game against the New York Knicks in New York. (Associated Press)
The Ringer report pointed out that after 76ers officials were contacted about the suspicious activity, some of the accounts went private -- including one that hadn’t been active since December.
Colangelo, 52, confirmed in a statement to the Ringer that one of the accounts was his.
“Like many of my colleagues in sports, I have used social media as a means to keep up with the news,” the statement said. “While I have never posted anything whatsoever on social media, I have used the @Phila1234567 Twitter account referenced in this story to monitor our industry and other current events. This storyline is disturbing to me on many levels, as I am not familiar with any of the other accounts that have been brought to my attention, nor do I know who is behind them or what their motives may be in using them.”
Embiid also told ESPN that he talked with Colangelo and the executive denied the tweets were from him.
“I talked to him and he said that he didn't say that,” Embiid told ESPN. “He called me just to deny the story. Gotta believe him until proven otherwise. If true, though, that would be really bad.”
Colangelo is a two-time Executive of the Year Award winner and has served as a top executive in NBA front offices with three different teams – the Phoenix Suns, Raptors and 76ers.
His father, Jerry Colangelo, 78, the longtime Phoenix Suns owner, now serves as a 76ers adviser.
Sam Hinkie leaked this shit I bet!! Either way Colangelo's ass will be fired.
don't forget...
he is NBA ROYALTY!
follow this closely
Waits paitently for the hes a hoe and cupcake talk..
Oh that' right, he' white... and not KD
Oh that' right, he' white... and not KD
This.
And between the Finals, Draft, and NBA Awards ceremony, this will be forgotten about before it even had traction.
Yup. Better believe Adam Silver is pissed by this though. So we'll see what happens.
Yup. Better believe Adam Silver is pissed by this though. So we'll see what happens.
TRUTH...
cause they gonna try to just let him go and keep it moving
cause if the leaking medical reports are true?
now you f*cking with players MONEY so you talking contracts and the player's union and LAWYERS getting involved AND AGENTS
but WORSE?
that is some federal violation of HIPPA guidelines.
I don;t think he gonna get a Adam Shefter pass on this one, cause he is EMPLOYED by the league and as such has a responsibility with sensitive information.
This is so awesome
Are you crazy this shit is deep if true dude violated many laws about disclosing medical info. This is career suicide if true this story is going no where
Chill. I didn't see all that. The story I read just said he was tweeting from multiple accounts on some KD shit
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Because he is white he will deny deny deny even when it’s found out he did it
This is the behavior of a 52 year old man who still needs his dad to get him jobs.
Distractions is the last thing the Sixers need with all the offseason work that needs to be done.
Sixers haters are loving this.
Sixers haters are loving this.
http://www.latimes.com/sports/nba/la-sp-76ers-colangelo-twitter-investigation-20180531-story.html
76ers' investigation into claims that Bryan Colangelo had fake Twitter accounts is surreal
By DAN WOIKE
MAY 31, 2018 | 3:00 AM
In the moments after the Golden State Warriors eliminated the Houston Rockets to advance to the NBA Finals, anyone who decided to point out what seemed like an inarguable truth was going to hear from a vocal minority.
Some people thought the Rockets had been cheated. It wasn’t the 27 missed three-point shots in a row that had grounded their team or the defense’s inability to slow down the Warriors in the second half. It was the missed calls, the blind eyes to contact, the waved off made shots that caused the loss.
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“Believing the NBA isn’t rigged means you’re living in a fairytale,” John Lake (@lake20033) tweeted. “In a league that’s been proven rigged by officiating,” @fantasy_mancave wrote, “I think people have the right to (complain) but really shouldn’t since they keep forgetting it’s fixed.”
There was no reason before Tuesday night to think either of these people were more than paranoid, conspiracy-loving and jilted fans. No one before Tuesday night really considered that the faceless handles on Twitter could — just maybe — belong to an NBA executive in disguise.
Not anymore.
A story filed on The Ringer by Ben Detrick pieced together a puzzle of five Twitter accounts allegedly tied to Bryan Colangelo, the Philadelphia 76ers’ president of basketball operations. Some of the accounts were used to defend Colangelo, to disclose medical information about players, to complain about others on the roster and to discredit former and current NBA executives.
The report, which was the result of an anonymous tip, tied the longtime basketball executive to these Twitter accounts: @AlVic40117560 (Eric Jr.), @phila1234567 (No Name), @Enoughunkownso1 (Enoughunkownsources), @HonestA34197118 (HonestAbe) and @s_bonhams (Still Balling).
Four of the accounts, according to The Ringer’s reporting, have been actively tweeting since April 2016 about topics ranging from University of Chicago basketball (where Colangelo’s son, Mattia, played guard) to Toronto Raptors executive Masai Ujiri, who replaced Colangelo there, from Joel Embiid’s off-court activity to medical information about former Philadelphia center Jahlil Okafor.
Bryan Colangelo worked in the Toronto and Phoenix front offices before joining Philadelphia. (Matt Rourke / Associated Press)
After The Ringer contacted the team about the Eric Jr. and No Name accounts, the other three “burner accounts” were switched from public to protected accounts.
Colangelo, in a statement to The Ringer, acknowledged running one of the accounts.
“Like many of my colleagues in sports, I have used social media as a means to keep up with the news. While I have never posted anything whatsoever on social media, I have used the @Phila1234567 Twitter account referenced in this story to monitor our industry and other current events,” he told the website. “This storyline is disturbing to me on many levels, as I am not familiar with any of the other accounts that have been brought to my attention, nor do I know who is behind them or what their motives may be in using them.”
After the report, the 76ers announced they would investigate the claims.
“An online media outlet filed a story linking multiple social media accounts to 76ers president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo,” the team’s statement said. “The allegations are serious and we have commenced an independent investigation into the matter. We will report the results of that investigation as soon as it is concluded."
Colangelo, the son of former Phoenix Suns general manager, Hall of Famer and current USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo, worked in the Suns’ and Raptors’ front offices before replacing Sam Hinkie in Philadelphia.
It’s not uncommon for team executives to use anonymous Twitter accounts to monitor media members and news from around the league. At least three organizations in Los Angeles have or had members of the front office with accounts not linked to their names, according to sources with knowledge of the accounts who are not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver admitted to using an anonymous Twitter account to monitor the league.
76ers to investigate claims that team president anonymously criticized organization on social media
MAY 30, 2018 | 9:25 AM
The Ringer’s report, which used several pieces of circumstantial evidence, even became a topic of conversation at media day for the NBA Finals in Oakland on Wednesday, with no one seemingly willing to address the topic head-on.
“A burner account? Nah,” Warriors guard Nick Young joked when asked about his social media. “ just like to get hacked a lot. Sometimes I leave my Twitter open and people just write whatever on it.”
This isn’t new ground for the NBA — not even this season.
In September, tweets from Golden State forward Kevin Durant’s Twitter account used the third person to criticize his former team, the Oklahoma City Thunder. The tweets were deleted and Durant apologized for going “too far.”
Some speculated Durant was also operating a “burner account” and just forgot to switch to that handle before going after the Thunder for providing him with a subpar roster, a theory Durant denied.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr accidentally sent a tweet in February responding to a video sent to him of James Harden using an illegal side-step to shoot a three-point shot.
“It’s an embarrassment,” Kerr wrote. “I think the league is so happy with all the scoring that it doesn’t want to enforce stuff like that.”
“I thought it was a direct message,” Kerr said with a smile. “My new iPhone is killing me.”
Whatever the results of the investigation, this is the kind of story the basketball-obsessed corners of the Internet love. It’s salacious, it’s behind the curtain and it involves anonymous criticisms — one of the Internet’s specialties.
Although the NBA Finals, with an unprecedented fourth consecutive meeting between the Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers, are set to begin Thursday, a second set of headlines for the league is never a bad thing.
“The whole Colangelo situation is great for the NBA. Finally brings some intrigued [sic] to basketball in late May and June. More talked about than the finals.”
At least those are the thoughts of @HootiesEra, a basketball-loving, anonymous New York Yankees fan on Twitter.
Or maybe it’s Adam Silver.
76ers' investigation into claims that Bryan Colangelo had fake Twitter accounts is surreal
By DAN WOIKE
MAY 31, 2018 | 3:00 AM
In the moments after the Golden State Warriors eliminated the Houston Rockets to advance to the NBA Finals, anyone who decided to point out what seemed like an inarguable truth was going to hear from a vocal minority.
Some people thought the Rockets had been cheated. It wasn’t the 27 missed three-point shots in a row that had grounded their team or the defense’s inability to slow down the Warriors in the second half. It was the missed calls, the blind eyes to contact, the waved off made shots that caused the loss.
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ADVERTISEMENT
“Believing the NBA isn’t rigged means you’re living in a fairytale,” John Lake (@lake20033) tweeted. “In a league that’s been proven rigged by officiating,” @fantasy_mancave wrote, “I think people have the right to (complain) but really shouldn’t since they keep forgetting it’s fixed.”
There was no reason before Tuesday night to think either of these people were more than paranoid, conspiracy-loving and jilted fans. No one before Tuesday night really considered that the faceless handles on Twitter could — just maybe — belong to an NBA executive in disguise.
Not anymore.
A story filed on The Ringer by Ben Detrick pieced together a puzzle of five Twitter accounts allegedly tied to Bryan Colangelo, the Philadelphia 76ers’ president of basketball operations. Some of the accounts were used to defend Colangelo, to disclose medical information about players, to complain about others on the roster and to discredit former and current NBA executives.
The report, which was the result of an anonymous tip, tied the longtime basketball executive to these Twitter accounts: @AlVic40117560 (Eric Jr.), @phila1234567 (No Name), @Enoughunkownso1 (Enoughunkownsources), @HonestA34197118 (HonestAbe) and @s_bonhams (Still Balling).
Four of the accounts, according to The Ringer’s reporting, have been actively tweeting since April 2016 about topics ranging from University of Chicago basketball (where Colangelo’s son, Mattia, played guard) to Toronto Raptors executive Masai Ujiri, who replaced Colangelo there, from Joel Embiid’s off-court activity to medical information about former Philadelphia center Jahlil Okafor.
Bryan Colangelo worked in the Toronto and Phoenix front offices before joining Philadelphia. (Matt Rourke / Associated Press)
After The Ringer contacted the team about the Eric Jr. and No Name accounts, the other three “burner accounts” were switched from public to protected accounts.
Colangelo, in a statement to The Ringer, acknowledged running one of the accounts.
“Like many of my colleagues in sports, I have used social media as a means to keep up with the news. While I have never posted anything whatsoever on social media, I have used the @Phila1234567 Twitter account referenced in this story to monitor our industry and other current events,” he told the website. “This storyline is disturbing to me on many levels, as I am not familiar with any of the other accounts that have been brought to my attention, nor do I know who is behind them or what their motives may be in using them.”
After the report, the 76ers announced they would investigate the claims.
“An online media outlet filed a story linking multiple social media accounts to 76ers president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo,” the team’s statement said. “The allegations are serious and we have commenced an independent investigation into the matter. We will report the results of that investigation as soon as it is concluded."
Colangelo, the son of former Phoenix Suns general manager, Hall of Famer and current USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo, worked in the Suns’ and Raptors’ front offices before replacing Sam Hinkie in Philadelphia.
It’s not uncommon for team executives to use anonymous Twitter accounts to monitor media members and news from around the league. At least three organizations in Los Angeles have or had members of the front office with accounts not linked to their names, according to sources with knowledge of the accounts who are not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver admitted to using an anonymous Twitter account to monitor the league.
76ers to investigate claims that team president anonymously criticized organization on social media
MAY 30, 2018 | 9:25 AM
The Ringer’s report, which used several pieces of circumstantial evidence, even became a topic of conversation at media day for the NBA Finals in Oakland on Wednesday, with no one seemingly willing to address the topic head-on.
“A burner account? Nah,” Warriors guard Nick Young joked when asked about his social media. “ just like to get hacked a lot. Sometimes I leave my Twitter open and people just write whatever on it.”
This isn’t new ground for the NBA — not even this season.
In September, tweets from Golden State forward Kevin Durant’s Twitter account used the third person to criticize his former team, the Oklahoma City Thunder. The tweets were deleted and Durant apologized for going “too far.”
Some speculated Durant was also operating a “burner account” and just forgot to switch to that handle before going after the Thunder for providing him with a subpar roster, a theory Durant denied.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr accidentally sent a tweet in February responding to a video sent to him of James Harden using an illegal side-step to shoot a three-point shot.
“It’s an embarrassment,” Kerr wrote. “I think the league is so happy with all the scoring that it doesn’t want to enforce stuff like that.”
“I thought it was a direct message,” Kerr said with a smile. “My new iPhone is killing me.”
Whatever the results of the investigation, this is the kind of story the basketball-obsessed corners of the Internet love. It’s salacious, it’s behind the curtain and it involves anonymous criticisms — one of the Internet’s specialties.
Although the NBA Finals, with an unprecedented fourth consecutive meeting between the Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers, are set to begin Thursday, a second set of headlines for the league is never a bad thing.
“The whole Colangelo situation is great for the NBA. Finally brings some intrigued [sic] to basketball in late May and June. More talked about than the finals.”
At least those are the thoughts of @HootiesEra, a basketball-loving, anonymous New York Yankees fan on Twitter.
Or maybe it’s Adam Silver.
you need to really STFU before people remember the sexual harassment suits your organization got coming...
https://nypost.com/2018/05/31/internet-connects-twitter-dots-to-bryan-colangelos-wife/
Internet connects Twitter dots to Bryan Colangelo’s wife
Internet sleuths believe they are one step closer to exposing the identity behind several Twitter burner accounts tied to 76ers president and general manager Bryan Colangelo, alleging his wife may be the mastermind.
Hours after the organization announced they would launch an internal investigation into allegations brought to light in The Ringer’s report, published Tuesday, a 76ers fan account, “Did the Sixers win?,” connected the dots to Colangelo’s wife, Barbara Bottini, noting the last two digits of her phone number were linked to three of the burners in question. Additional Twitter detectives followed suit, piling on the evidence.
“When you type Bryan Colangelo’s wife’s # into the Twitter reset form,” a Philadelphia-based user posted.
“For more evidence of her number ending in 91, see the following screenshot from @2003mubb who noted the recover number on Barbara’s email,” tweeted anotherPhiladelphia-area sports blogger.
The Athletic also pieced together a timeline Wednesday, noting past tweets from one of the alleged accounts were posted at the same time Colangelo spoke at a press conference on Feb. 11, 2017. And while the 76ers confirmed Colangelo himself is the owner of one account identified in The Ringer’s story, the executive backtracked on his original claim, that “someone is out to get me,” telling Yahoo Sports he cannot be sure someone set him up.
“This storyline is disturbing to me on many levels, as I am not familiar with any of the other accounts that have been brought to my attention, nor do I know who is behind them or what their motives may be in using them,” Colangelo said in a statement.
While tweets from the alleged burners have mercilessly defended Colangelo, even addressing his collar size, sensitive information has also been released, particularly a failed physical by former first-round pick Jahlil Okafor. The accounts have also criticized 76ers head coach Brett Brown, former general manager Sam Hinkie, last year’s first overall pick, Markelle Fultz, and star Joel Embiid, who spoke with Colangelo after the story broke.
“I talked to him and he said that he didn’t say that,” Embiid told ESPN. “He called me just to deny the story. Gotta believe until proven otherwise. If true, though, that would be really bad.”
Internet connects Twitter dots to Bryan Colangelo’s wife
Internet sleuths believe they are one step closer to exposing the identity behind several Twitter burner accounts tied to 76ers president and general manager Bryan Colangelo, alleging his wife may be the mastermind.
Hours after the organization announced they would launch an internal investigation into allegations brought to light in The Ringer’s report, published Tuesday, a 76ers fan account, “Did the Sixers win?,” connected the dots to Colangelo’s wife, Barbara Bottini, noting the last two digits of her phone number were linked to three of the burners in question. Additional Twitter detectives followed suit, piling on the evidence.
“When you type Bryan Colangelo’s wife’s # into the Twitter reset form,” a Philadelphia-based user posted.
“For more evidence of her number ending in 91, see the following screenshot from @2003mubb who noted the recover number on Barbara’s email,” tweeted anotherPhiladelphia-area sports blogger.
The Athletic also pieced together a timeline Wednesday, noting past tweets from one of the alleged accounts were posted at the same time Colangelo spoke at a press conference on Feb. 11, 2017. And while the 76ers confirmed Colangelo himself is the owner of one account identified in The Ringer’s story, the executive backtracked on his original claim, that “someone is out to get me,” telling Yahoo Sports he cannot be sure someone set him up.
“This storyline is disturbing to me on many levels, as I am not familiar with any of the other accounts that have been brought to my attention, nor do I know who is behind them or what their motives may be in using them,” Colangelo said in a statement.
While tweets from the alleged burners have mercilessly defended Colangelo, even addressing his collar size, sensitive information has also been released, particularly a failed physical by former first-round pick Jahlil Okafor. The accounts have also criticized 76ers head coach Brett Brown, former general manager Sam Hinkie, last year’s first overall pick, Markelle Fultz, and star Joel Embiid, who spoke with Colangelo after the story broke.
“I talked to him and he said that he didn’t say that,” Embiid told ESPN. “He called me just to deny the story. Gotta believe until proven otherwise. If true, though, that would be really bad.”
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