Trade and free agency news can come from unusual sources these days, whether it’s WetButt23 on Reddit or Bryan Colangelo-linked burner Twitter accounts, But it’s always worth investigating any social media claim a bit carefully, as we’ve seen plenty of outlets fall for fake accounts, or for fake stories or quotes from real accounts. And British tabloid The Daily Mail got bit by the second one this weekend; model Chrissy Teigen (seen above throwing out the first pitch at a 2017 Seattle Mariners game, with her husband John Legend and their daughter Luna) tweeted that she “felt like starting basketball rumors,” then proceeded to start an extremely improbable one.
The rumor in question? It wasn’t just that LeBron James was heading to Los Angeles in free agency (which of course turned out to be true), but that he was personally in a Los Angeles shop buying a custom-embroidered Lakers’ jersey, and then that he left in what looks like an old station wagon. Even if the photo itself wasn’t obviously enough a joke, and if the situation wasn’t ludicrous enough without further context, any sort of of look at Teigen’s tweets as a whole would have revealed that she was trolling.
But the Mail didn’t do that, instead saying said she “scored a scoop.”
I feel like starting basketball rumors
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) July 1, 2018
Ok got him leaving the basketball jersey embroidery shop. This is downtown LA pic.twitter.com/fMhrjFJKgz
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) July 1, 2018
After James did in fact sign with the Lakers, Teigen sent this rather tongue-in-cheek tweet:
told youuuu https://t.co/ENTrEuq0NC
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) July 2, 2018
But the Mail took this at face value, and Teigen reacted appropriately:
I’m crying pic.twitter.com/kFgfZJqGMY
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) July 2, 2018
And there are still people who don’t get the joke, and she’s still dunking on them:
No I guess they all have to get their own embroidery done. It keeps them grounded https://t.co/W5Ks67Dzxi
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) July 2, 2018
However, the Mail has now changed its story to reflect that she was joking.
Chrissy Teigen set Twitter alight over the weekend after she joked about spotting LeBron James in LA on Saturday before Sunday’s announcement that he will join the Los Angeles Lakers with a $154 million contract.
For hours before the big reveal, the 32-year-old former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model sent out a fake tweet claiming she had seen the basketball star getting his name embroidered on a blank Lakers jersey.
Sadly, the article includes no mention that they got it wrong at first. But it has lots of tweets from other celebrities. And while the Mail is not exactly known for its journalistic record (it is known for a long list of successful libel lawsuits against it!), this is still a pretty embarrassing faceplant on their part.
