NBA Film Tweets: A Fun Addition to NBA Twitter

NBA Twitter can be a cold, dark place.

There’s death threats thrown at players like Los Angeles Lakers guard Russell Westbrook and his family. There’s frequent misogynist bashing of the WNBA. And there’s daily trashing of LeBron James and other stars from professional hater Skip Bayless.

Then just a few days ago, there was Philadelphia 76ers coach Doc Rivers and his rather...ummm...X-rated situation that flooded our timelines. Come on, Doc!

It’s in this world of sin, that I present to you a ray of light: NBA Film Tweets.

Started this month, the Twitter account has already eclipsed 22 thousand followers, reeling in likes and retweets with an entertaining, yet stunningly simple concept: digging through Twitter archives to feature a catalog of NBA players’ tweets about movies. The reposted tweets include player commentary about films, including positive reviews, gripes and celebrity crushes. Sometimes, there’s even a profound thought about cinema (looking at you, three-time NBA Sixth Man of the Year Jamal Crawford).

You might recognize Los Angeles Clippers super fan and Hollywood icon Billy Crystal in the account’s profile picture. He’s sporting an NBA referee uniform as a part of his role in the 1990s rom-com “Forget Paris.”

Much like Crystal, the account is a fun, often humorous addition to the Twitterverse. It’s also one of the few times uncovering celebrities’ social media posts has produced something positive and harmless. For a film buff and NBA nerd like me, it’s an amazing venn diagram of my two passions converging. The content should be of some interest to Blazers fans, too. Along with Crawford, the account features tweets from numerous past and present Blazers (13, according to my count), including some of Rip City’s greatest personalities like Evan Turner, Robin Lopez, Zach Collins and Hassan Whiteside.

The group is headlined by current franchise star Lillard, who in 2014, responded to BYU legend Jimmer Fredette’s open invitation to rank Adam Sandler movies.

While I don’t argue with the top spot and I love the shoutout to “Billy Madison,” I’m surprised to see Lillard give “Anger Management” so much love. I probably would replace it on my list with “The Wedding Singer” or if we want to get a little more sophisticated, Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2002 film “Punch-Drunk Love.”

In a nostalgia-heavy post dating back to Dec. 20, 2009, ex-Blazer Seth Curry and Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry saw James Cameron’s “Avatar” (presumably in a sibling outing). Seth and Steph (ages 19 and 21 at the time) were on the hype train like the rest of the country.

Other Rip City highlights include former Blazers forward Al-Farouq Aminu rescinding a negative review of “Pulp Fiction” and current Blazers forward Justise Winslow dunking on “Thor 2.” He lashes out at the Marvel Cinematic Universe with enough disdain to make Martin Scorsese proud.

Elsewhere on the account, a teenage Dejounte Murray has a loud obsession with cuddling, former NBA All-Star Shawn Marion has a strange obsession with the 2011 romp “Hall Pass” and Dallas Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie is on the verge of incriminating himself.

As you can see, the content on NBA Film Tweets covers a wide range of takes — the good, the bad, the ugly....and the pointless. If a thought involves movies and an NBA player tweeted it, no matter how small, there’s a good chance it’ll be spotlighted. The account harkens back to a simpler time of social media that didn’t feel so nutty, back when status updates were primarily used for brief updates about one’s day and random thoughts.

Additionally — hopefully without getting too deep about this silly account — NBA Film Tweets helps remind fans that NBA players are people just like us. They binge the same Netflix shows and also shared cringe statuses during their early teenage days (that case is more for the millennial and Gen Z crowds). The account removes some of that mystique and buffer. Mainly, it’s fun.

Dinwiddie was looking into film piracy just five years ago. James Harden finds “Bridesmaids” hilarious. And in 2011, Chris Paul really just wanted to find a Nick Cannon movie on DVD.

I didn’t need to know any of this information, but I’m happy I do. That, my friends, is the beauty of NBA Film Tweets.

Go give them a follow.