Don’t Tweet … Ever (Even if It’s Your Job)

(Screen shot from @HoustonRockets)

The first round of the NBA playoffs — aside from a Clippers–Spurs series that will surely be remembered for decades to come — was downright awful.

To know that, all you had to do was watch any other series (seriously, “Arrow” is some straight trash). If you made the better life decision to watch just about anything other than professional basketball, you also could have found out how terrible the playoffs were based on one of the biggest stories of the first round: the firing of the Houston Rockets’ social media manager, Chad Shanks.

That’s right. One of the most interesting stories of the whole first round had nothing to do with what happened on the court, but rather with something someone tweeted about something that happened on the court.

So what did Shanks do to get fired? Tweet something racist? Accidentally tweet a link to some NSFW thing? Beat someone unconscious with his iPhone, while still tweeting updates from the game?

Nah. He sent the tweet pictured above.

That’s all he did. Apparently, 🐴 + 🔫 = 🔥 💻 👨 (or maybe it’s more like 🐴 + 🔫 = 🔥 📱 👨 ?).

Either way, if you think this is ridiculous, you’re right — I am really good with emojis. But, if you think that Shanks getting fired is ridiculous too, you are also right. I mean, honestly, I can barely type this without laughing: It was a horse emoji and a gun emoji that got this dude canned.

But, as an article on Vice Sports detailed, such is the absurd existence of a social media manager for a sports team or any brand really: Be funny and edgy or you’re out, but don’t be too funny and edgy or you’re out.

Seems reasonable.

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Charlie Crespo (@Little_Utopia) is the editor-in-chief of Little Utopia.