Eric Lewis - New York Knicks v Los Angeles Lakers
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - LeBron James (#23) of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts to a call by referee Eric Lewis during the first half of a game against the New York Knicks at Staples Center on January 07, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

The NBA announced that veteran referee Eric Lewis will retire effective immediately, according to an official statement.

The 52-year-old started officiating games in the world's premier basketball league in 2005 after starting from the high school level, working his way up to the collegiate tier in his native Florida until he made the NBA G League.

Lewis just concluded his 19th season as an official during the 2022-23 NBA season. Before the start of last season, he had officiated 1,098 regular-season games and 82 playoff games, including six NBA Finals appearances.

He last officiated an NBA game last May 16, Game 1 of the 2023 Western Conference finals between the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Lakers.

Eric Lewis' burner accounts

The longtime official was involved in a controversy during the 2023 NBA Playoffs.

The league launched an investigation regarding an alleged burner account of Lewis on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, one week after his last officiated game.

The account, under the username "Blair Cuttliff" and handle @CuttliffBlair, made several statements defending Lewis against allegations of favoring the Boston Celtics and speaking about other matters regarding officiating in the league.

Currently, a league rule does not allow referees to publicly comment on officiating without authorization.

In line with his retirement, the league closed the investigation on the alleged burner account of Lewis.