How did Bryan Colangelo and the Sixers get here? A timeline from the Process to the Twitter mess

A timeline showing the chronology of Bryan Colangelo, the Sixers, and the Twitter controversy.

Bryan Colangelo speaks to the media with owner Josh Harris after being named president of basketball operations on April 10, 2016.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer

Published May 30, 2018, 5:14 p.m. ET

The website The Ringer posted a story Tuesday night alleging that Bryan Colangelo, the Sixers president of basketball operations, runs five anonymous Twitter accounts, using them to criticize his predecessor, Sam Hinkie, as well as Sixers players he drafted and to praise his own work. The accounts also may have disclosed sensitive team information.

Here is a chronology of the Sixers and the Twitter accounts since Hinkie took over the team.

2013

May 10: After many seasons of mediocrity, the Sixers name Sam Hinkie as president of basketball operations and general manager. The hiring of Hinkie, a Stanford MBA who was vice president of basketball operations for the Houston Rockets, signals an embrace of a rebuilding plan that features a more analytical approach to basketball, and a tolerance to lose enough games to qualify for future high draft pick. This acceptance of tanking for draft picks becomes known as "The Process."

June 28: Hinkie trades veteran point guard Jrue Holiday to the New Orleans Pelicans in a draft-day deal that lands center Nerlens Noel, whose recovery from knee surgery made him slip to the sixth pick in the draft. The Sixers will start the 2013-14 season with only six players with more than two years of NBA experience. They finish with a record of 19-63. Noel doesn't play at all.

>>READ MORE: The process behind "The Process"

2014

June 27: The Sixers choose center Joel Embiid with the third pick in the NBA draft. Like Noel, Embiid is recovering from major surgery and does not play for the entire 2014-15 season. The Sixers finish the season 18-64 and are last in the league in attendance.

2015

June 25: The Sixers draft their third consecutive center, choosing Jahil Okafor with the third pick. Okafor's selection creates a mess at center, with Noel also on the roster. Embiid would go on to miss his second consecutive full season.

Nov. 29: The Sixers lose their 28th consecutive game (a streak that started the previous season), setting a new NBA record for futility.

Dec. 7: Amid unrest from the league office about the team's direction, the Sixers appoint 76-year-old Jerry Colangelo as chairman of basketball operations. Hinkie remains team president and general manager.

2016

April 6: Hinkie resigns as GM. Jerry Colangelo's son, Bryan, becomes the Sixers' new general manager. Jerry Colangelo becomes a special adviser to owner Josh Harris.

April: Twitter account "Eric jr" is created, with the description "Basketball lifer" and a location of "South Philly." The account tweets and retweets comments favorable to Bryan Colangelo and dismissive of Sam Hinkie.

November: The Twitter account @phila1234567 is created. Bryan Colangelo said in a statement to The Ringer that he has used this account to follow basketball news and other current events, but has "never posted anything whatsover on social media."

2017

February: Okafor is held out of games as rumors of a possible trade intensify. "Eric jr" responds to a tweet by Philly.com Sixers beat writer Keith Pompey, suggesting a failed physical was the reason for why the trade hadn't yet happened.

February: The Twitter account "Still Balling" is created. According to tweets captured by The Ringer, the account criticizes Noel and Embiid — two players drafted by Hinkie — and praises players drafted by Colangelo, such as Ben Simmons.

June 19: Colangelo trades with the Boston Celtics to land the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, which the Sixers use to select Markelle Fultz. The guard develops a mysterious shoulder injury that inhibited his play and keep him from playing for most of the 2017-18 season.

November: The Twitter account "Enoughunkownsources" is created. According to Twitter screenshots captured by The Ringer, this account also criticizes Hinkie, Noel ("selfish punk"), and Embiid while praising Colangelo.

December: The Twitter account "HonestAbe" is created, another account The Ringer suggests is closely tied to Colangelo.

2018

February 3: A post from "Still Balling" blames Fultz's problems on a "really traumatic family personal experience."

April 24: After finishing the regular season on a 16-game winning streak, the Sixers return to the playoffs for the first time in six seasons and defeat the Miami Heat in five games in the first round.

May 9: The Sixers are eliminated from the playoffs by the Celtics in five games.

May 29: Coach Brett Brown agrees to a three-year contract extension. Later that day, The Ringer posts a story linking Colangelo to the five anonymous Twitter accounts.

May 30: The Sixers announce they've launched an independent investigation.