76ers, Muscala apologize for offensive tweets by player’s dad

WASHINGTON: The Philadelphia 76ers and forward Mike Muscala have apologized for racially offensive Twitter comments directed at Minnesota Timberwolves player Jimmy Butler by Muscala’s father.

“Simply put, they are unacceptable and in no way reflective of the beliefs of our organization,” Sixers general manager Elton Brand said in a statement.

“Having known Mike since his rookie year in 2013-14 when we were teammates, I am also certain these posts are in no way reflective of his own personal beliefs.”

Muscala himself denounced the posts by his father, Bob Muscala, under the Twitter handle @MuskieBobber.

The elder Muscala, responding to a newspaper article about a testy return to Timberwolves practice by Butler — who has asked to be traded — called the behavior “egomaniacal”.

“African American mental illness,” added the tweet, which has since been deleted.

Mike Muscala offered an apology for his father’s “offensive social media commentary.

“His comments were uncalled for and inappropriate, and they do not reflect who I am. I’d also like to apologize to the 76ers and my colleagues across the NBA for the distraction my father’s comments caused. I really appreciate the professionalism and support shown by Elton, Coach (Brett) Brown, my teammates and the entire 76ers organization.”

This isn’t the first social media controversy to catch out the 76ers.

Bryan Colangelo resigned as president of basketball operations in June after it emerged his wife had operated fake Twitter accounts to praise his work and criticize players.