76ers Investigating GM Bryan Colangelo's Reported Use of Burner Twitter Accounts

The Philadelphia 76ers announced Wednesday they will conduct an investigation into a report that president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo has used multiple Twitter accounts to speak ill of several current and former Sixers players. 

Rich Hofmann of The Athletic tweeted the 76ers' official statement on the matter:

Ben Detrick of The Ringer reported Tuesday that Colangelo has utilized anonymous "burner" Twitter accounts to further his own agenda.

Sixers All-Star center Joel Embiid told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski that Colangelo said the allegations are false.

The Sixers provided The Ringer with the following statement from Colangelo regarding his social media habits:

"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. 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."

Detrick reported that he asked the 76ers about two of the five Twitter accounts he suspected were being run by Colangelo.

After having a conversation with the team, Detrick added that the three accounts he didn't discuss were switched from public to private.

The accounts in question were reportedly used to criticize current Sixers Embiid and Markelle Fultz, as well as former Sixers Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel.

There were also negative tweets directed toward former 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie and Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri, who worked under Colangelo in Toronto.

Wojnarowski reported that in the wake of the report, Colangelo has been "actively reaching out to individuals mentioned in those burner accounts, insisting that he isn't responsible for those tweets."

"I talked to him and he said that he didn’t say that," Embiid told Wojnarowski on Tuesday night. "He called me just to deny the story. Gotta believe him until proven otherwise. If true though, that would be really bad."

Colangelo has been the 76ers' president of basketball operations since 2016 following stints with the Phoenix Suns and Raptors.

After a five-year playoff drought, the Sixers went 52-30 this season and reached the second round of the playoffs where they were eliminated by the Boston Celtics.