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The NBA offseason, as told by social media

Jackie Bamberger
Joel Embiid cemented himself as NBA Twitter MVP. (Getty)
Joel Embiid cemented himself as NBA Twitter MVP. (Getty)

It’s been a wild NBA offseason, with plenty of Earth-shattering trades, signings, hirings, firings and shade being thrown every which way. And it all went down on NBA Twitter.

Because NBA Twitter is the best, we’re telling the story of the NBA offseason entirely in tweets (and five Instagrams). We couldn’t get to *everything*, but we’re bringing you the best of the best reactions.

It didn’t take long for the NBA offseason to bring some social media fun, as LeBron James and Draymond Green engaged in some back-and-forth jabs on Instagram as the Golden State Warriors celebrated their title.

Them dubs finally made him go bald!!! Congrats bro @kingjames

A post shared by Draymond Green (@money23green) on Jun 15, 2017 at 12:38pm PDT

…. That's what she said, HUH?!?!? .

A post shared by LeBron James (@kingjames) on Jun 15, 2017 at 12:13pm PDT

The offseason drama continued with the NBA draft, with plenty of reactions to Lonzo Ball (and his father, LaVar) being drafted by his hometown Los Angeles Lakers. NBA draft night also saw first big trade of the summer — Jimmy Butler’s move to the Minnesota Timberwolves from the Chicago Bulls.

Later in the week, Russell Westbrook won his first MVP award over James Harden.

A day later, New York Knicks fans saw their prayers answered when Phil Jackson was removed as President of Basketball Operations, shortly after he publicly tried to trade Kristaps Porzingis.

HALLELUJAH.

A post shared by Spike Lee (@officialspikelee) on Jun 28, 2017 at 4:40am PDT

That SAME day, social media went wild when it was reported that Chris Paul was on his way to join James Harden and the Houston Rockets.

It wasn’t long before another superstar trade shook up the league, as Thunder GM Sam Presti pulled off a steal of a deal to bring Paul George to Oklahoma.

In early July, the NBA Emoji War of 2017 got underway as Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz, Isaiah Thomas (then) of the Boston Celtics and Hassan Whiteside of the Miami Heat all engaged in a bidding war for free agent Gordon Hayward’s services.

Like Kevin Durant in 2016, Hayward’s decision came on the Fourth of July, but not without plenty of suspense. ESPN reporter Chris Haynes reported that Hayward was on his way to Boston, but Hayward’s agent quickly walked it back, leading to hours and hours of confusion.

Hayward finally ended the speculation, confirming with a Players Tribune piece that he was, indeed, reuniting with his former college coach Brad Stevens on the Celtics.

NBA Twitter then turned its attention to Summer League action, specifically, Lonzo Ball’s performances and his ever-changing footwear.

Just. Do. It

A post shared by LeBron James (@kingjames) on Jul 12, 2017 at 9:44pm PDT

In mid-July, Kyrie Irving’s request for a trade absolutely floored social media. A few weeks later, it was reported that he was on his way to Boston.

Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant found himself the target of NBA Twitter’s jokes when it was revealed that he uses anonymous burner social media accounts to defend himself against criticism.

Things turned serious after Stephen Curry told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols he did not want to go to President Donald Trump’s White House. Trump fired back on social media, sparking many players, and even rival LeBron James, to speak up in support of Curry and the Warriors.

The summer saw two more huge moves, with Carmelo Anthony joining Russell Westbrook and Paul George in OKC and Dwyane Wade joining forces with his BFF LeBron James in Cleveland.

Ain’t no burning #chicago #chicagobulls #dwaynewade #clevelandcavaliers #dwade

A post shared by rDre Hmu for Beats (@r_dre) on Sep 26, 2017 at 9:20am PDT

The NBA’s amazing social media summer concluded with Russell Westbrook signing a massive extension to stay with the Thunder, ON KEVIN DURANT’S BIRTHDAY.

We leave you with a celebration of two of MVPs of the offseason, #ChinaKlay and #HoodieMelo.