Sixers fans, I’m here to report that Burnergate will never die.
Bryan Colangelo, who resigned from his role as the Sixers’ president of basketball operations a little more than two years ago, bought a stake in the Illawarra Hawks of Australia’s National Basketball League earlier this month, so he’s back making the media rounds.
Which means, of course, he is now facing questions about the infamous Burnergate, because it’s one of the most bizarre and hilarious things in NBA history.
In an… interesting answer about Burnergate with the Sydney Morning Herald, Colangelo didn’t seem ready to take his portion of the blame for the debacle.
Seriously.
Here’s his take on what happened, two years later:
“I haven’t addressed it very much over the course of the last two years. I have stayed very much under the radar on the topic because it’s a sensitive topic, for a lot of reasons,” Colangelo said.
“Family, personal, professional, or otherwise. I have to say I was dealt a pretty big blow, personally and professionally. And it’s been a difficult time dealing with the fallout. I was completely blindsided by the accusation and the storyline of the controversy.”
[…]
“Once that investigation was completed and I was absolved, I felt the appropriate thing to do – in conjunction with ownership there in Philly – was to mutually walk away.
“It was a difficult decision and a difficult time for me. But I have to say, it was a very, very difficult time for my family. Because of some of the reasons that came to light, it was something I thought was important not to talk about, quite frankly. And we’re still dealing with that.
“But the No. 1 thing I thought needed to happen was trying to stay positive; preserve and love my family, protect their interests, emotionally or otherwise. And frankly, two years on, it’s gone. It’s in the past and I’m ready to move on.”
Some of what he says here – like trying to love and protect his family – is admirable and honest. But it’s not all truthful.
Colangelo saying he was “absolved” after an independent law firm investigated the incident is simply incorrect. The law firm explicitly stated that Colangelo was in part to blame for the content found in his wife’s Twitter accounts:
We believe that Mr. Colangelo was careless and in some instances reckless in failing to properly safeguard sensitive, non-public, club-related information in communications with individuals outside the 76ers organization.
That’s about as clear as it gets. Why try to rewrite history instead of just acknowleding what happened? Who knows?
For whatever reason, it seems that Colangelo, two years later, remains bent on his complete innocence.
We’ll see if he fares better in Australia.
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Bryan Colangelo’s latest take on Sixers Burnergate situation is interesting originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
