Sports Twitter Burner Accounts: A History

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Photo credit (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Getty Images)

Social media is a lot of things, many of them negative. In the sports Twitter world, however, nothing brings fans together like a good burner account. Love an athlete or front office, hate them, it doesn’t matter. Watching a notable person get caught using a fake account is the most 2019 of tabloid trash. The latest to run into this: the Jets. Theories are abound as to person behind the now-deleted @Wyattv18. Is it head coach Adam Gase, Daily News beat writer Manish Mehta, or neither?

It’s silly, unnecessary and there are far better uses of all our time. It’s also going to consume Jets Twitter until it’s solved. But beware of everything you read. While some accounts turn out to be the suspect, it’s not always the case. Here are five varying examples of athletes and execs, some real, some not.

Kevin Durant:

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One of the first instances came with one of the biggest athletes on the planet. Back in 2017 KD replied from his verified account about why he left Oklahoma City, referring to himself in the third person. The wheels started to fall off, and it turns out that Durant had a burner account. He claims it was to interact with friends and family, but he also used it to defend himself, and in this instance he forgot to switch accounts.

Actually a KD burner? Yes.

Bryan Colangelo:

In Durant’s instance, he had a fake account and we all moved on. For Bryan Colangelo, it cost him his job as the 76ers president of basketball operations. In early 2018 the Bill Simmons-led site The Ringer received a tip about multiple Twitter accounts that could be Colangelo – ones that criticized players and other executives and shared “sensitive” information. A team investigation found it was Colangelo’s wife behind it, and he resigned in June 2018.
Actually a Colangelo burner? Yes.

Antonio Brown:

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This was never officially confirmed, however there’s evidence that the embattled free agent wide receiver has a fake account that’s still active (the last tweet was December 28, criticizing JuJu Smith-Schuster). The @Tav58111115 handle heartily defends Brown, has a similar writing style as AB’s usual tweets, and his middle name is Tavaris. Also, would it surprise anyone that, after the insanity of the past six months, he has a burner account?

Actually an AB burner? Unknown.

Nelson Agholor:

The Eagles’ wide receiver came under fire in November for allegedly running an account that was critical of quarterback Carson Wentz. Agholor denied he ran it, and the person who threw out the allegation walked it back a few days later.

Actually an Agholor burner? No.

Brian Cashman:

The longtime Yankees’ general manager doesn’t have a Twitter account… or so we thought. While there is no verified account the GM runs, he admitted to The Athletic in December 2018 that he has a secret account. But there’s no controversy here, no bashing Aaron Boone’s bullpen decisions or mocking the rival Red Sox. It’s unknown if the account still exists, or what the handle even was. Like always, Cashman is a step ahead.
Actually a Cashman burner? Apparently, yes.

Jason Licht:

The Buccaneers’ GM was accused of running the account @jameis1of1, a pro-Jameis Winston account. A Tampa Bay-centric podcast released an in-depth video comparing Licht’s real quotes with some of the tweets from the account to state an admittedly good case. However, NFL reporter Mike Freeman shot down the rumors rather quickly, confirming that it was in fact not Licht.

Actually a Licht burner? No.