We Reminisce: The First Tweets Of 25 NBA Stars

Twitter has turned into the ESPN of the social media world, especially for our favorite hoopers. It’s a place where the average person can see what Kevin Durant is thinking on a Sunday afternoon, or Kobe‘s daily thoughts.

Now that Twitter is here to stay, no one can imagine life without it, right? To celebrate eight years since the first tweet, the overlords at Twitter recently gave everyone the ability to access their first tweet. Here at Dime, we decided to look at some of our favorite hoopers and see what their first tweets looked like.

With Twitter being eight years old, it’s curious to look at tweets from the likes of Steph Curry and Blake Griffin, who were still young pups when they launched their first tweet.

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Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5)
The future MVP of the 2014 NBA season first entered the Twitter world in 2009, which was his second season in the NBA and the inaugural season of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Besides tweeting, Durant was putting up 25.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists in his sophomore season. Kevin Durant has since tweeted over 21,000 times since then, which is about 4,000 tweets per year. That’s advanced analytics Twitter style!

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Blake Griffin (@BlakeGriffin32)
The Los Angeles Clippers have gone from “Lob City” to the “Blake Griffin Show” this season. Griffin is having his best season as a pro, averaging 24.4 points and 9.7 boards. However, his first tweet takes us back to 2009, when Griffin was still throwing down at the University of Oklahoma. The tweet refers to Griffin celebrating his brother’s birthday, in no other place, but Los Angeles. Was this tweet a foreshadow to the future or what?

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DeMarcus Cousins (@boogiecousins)
DeMarcus Cousins joined the Twitter world in 2010, when he was finishing up his only season at the University of Kentucky. Boogie Cousins didn’t quite understand Twitter at first, like most of us, and his first tweet definitely voices that. Cousins has tweeted less than 4,500 times since his first tweet. Maybe he still doesn’t get the hang of it–or he’s too busy putting up 22.3 points and 11.8 boards this season.

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LeBron James (@KingJames)
King James first tweeted in the summer of 2010, also known as the summer of The Decision. LeBron James doesn’t tweet that often, probably too busy winning NBA championships. However, he has been known to tweet every now and then, most recently when his Samsung device deleted all the information off of his smartphone. James is one of the main spokesman for the Samsung Galaxy, so these tweets may remind us why we don’t see King James on Twitter as much as we might like.

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Chris Paul (@CP3)
Point god, Chris Paul, sits atop the list of best point guards in the NBA, without any arguments from anyone. Since his first tweet in 2009, Paul has amassed over three million Twitter followers, but only 4,800 tweets. Even though he’s not that active on Twitter, Clippers fans would much rather have their star on the court instead of on his phone.

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Russell Westbrook (@RussWest44)
Uh, I’m not sure what this tweet means. Maybe Westbrook went bowling? That’s the only logical explanation I can think of. Maybe it has something to do with his ridiculous fashion sense. Westbrook first joined Twitter in 2009, which was his rookie season in OKC, when he averaged 16.1 points and 8.0 assists. Nowadays, Westbrook can be found on Twitter going insane over one of Kevin Durant’s performances or giving advice to those without loved ones on Valentine’s Day.

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Dwyane Wade (@DwyaneWade)
Dwyane Wade’s first tweet sounds like something a high school baller might post than someone destined for the Hall of Fame once his career is over. Ever since that tweet, Wade has picked up two more NBA championships and is looking for a third this season. That might be because of his buddy LeBron James than Wade himself, but rings are rings…right?

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Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard)
Damian Lillard’s first tweet surfaced in 2011 and only received five retweets and two favorites. That should say all you need to know about his popularity at that point, as he was still the unknown guard from Weber State. This tweet quotes the song “See World” from J. Cole‘s Friday Night Lights mixtape and forecasts the future for the young guard from Weber State.

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Steph Curry (@StephenCurry30)
When Stephen Curry first tweeted in 2009, he wasn’t the sharpshooting All-Star that everyone knows and loves today. He was just finishing up his career at Davidson and had yet to don an NBA uniform. Since his first tweet in 2009, Curry hasn’t done that bad for himself in the NBA, averaging 20.1 points and shooting 44 percent from deep for his career.

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Andre Iguodala (@andre)
Andre Iguodala is known for his lockdown defense and high-flying dunks. However, on Twitter, Iggy might be known more for his tweets after the Richard Sherman incident. Iguodala isn’t afraid to speak his mind on Twitter, that’s for sure. Iguodala doesn’t tweet often, but it’s usually entertaining when he does.

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Carmelo Anthony (@carmeloanthony)
Carmelo Anthony is one of those NBA superstars that isn’t fun to follow on Twitter. Most times, it looks like his account is being controlled by a PR firm or corporate sponsor, instead of ‘Melo himself. However, we will give ‘Melo a pass, as none of us would want to touch Twitter if we played for the Knicks either.

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Chris Bosh (@chrisbosh)
It’s such a Chris Bosh move for him to let everyone know in his first tweet that he will be starting his Twitter feed soon and to “subscribe” to him. Clearly unaware of how the Twitter world worked, Bosh was one of the first NBA stars on Twitter in 2008. Almost six years later and now Bosh can tweet with two NBA championship rings on his fingers–impressive.

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Paul George (@Paul_George24)
Back in 2009, Paul George was still hoopin’ at Fresno State. Apparently, George was still enjoying life before he found stardom with the Indiana Pacers. George’s first tweet was retweeted twice, showing how unknown George was at that time. Paul George now has over 16,000 tweets and 500,000 Twitter followers and everyone can follow his path to try to win an NBA championship this season.

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Roy Hibbert (@Hoya2aPacer)
Roy Hibbert is one of the best NBA stars to follow on Twitter and he shows it with his first tweet. Even though he’s on the cusp of making a run to the NBA Finals this season, Hibbert still has time to play Final Fantasy. Hibbert is even nice enough to give us his postgame reaction after a victory–make sure to follow Hibbert on Twitter.

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Kobe Bryant (@KobeBryant)
The Black Mamba was late to the game, joining Twitter at the beginning of 2013. Kobe has used Twitter to voice his opinions on various subjects and he’s not afraid to let the Lakers know how he feels. It’s almost impossible to be on Twitter and not follow Kobe, which is why he’s amassed close to five million followers in a little over a year.

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John Wall (@John_Wall)
John Wall made his first of many All-Star appearances this season. But when Wall first joined Twitter, he was still leading the Kentucky Wildcats squad. Wall has over 21,000 tweets and one million followers, showing how has popularity has exploded since he came into the NBA. Wall is a frequent tweeter, constantly giving his fans insight on his mindset during the day.

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Dwight Howard (@Dwighthoward)
When Dwight Howard first tweeted he was still a proud member of the Orlando Magic. Nowadays his tweets are talking about doing the “Nae-Nae” and showing his fun demeanor. His Twitter bio still reads, “After the ring!”, making the world wonder when that will change.

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Joakim Noah (@JoakimNoah)
Joakim Noah has exploded into the MVP race this season, but back in 2012, Noah was just worrying about what was on his plate for dinner. Or maybe his first tweet was a nickname that he wanted. Who really could figure out what Noah is thinking anyways?

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Derrick Rose (@Drose)
Derrick Rose’s first tweet is a sad reality to the new reputation of the former MVP. Instead of becoming accustomed to him obliterating competition on the court, we’re more used to him on the sidelines. Rose doesn’t tweet often, but it usually has meaning when he does. Hopefully the world can see Derrick Rose back on an NBA court for an extended time next season.

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Kyrie Irving (@KyrieIrving)
Uncle Drew’s first tweet came in 2011 when he was fresh off his freshman season at Duke–the freshman season where he played 11 games and a total of 303 minutes that is. That obviously didn’t matter as Irving has compiled averages of 20.8 points, 6.3 assists and 3.9 rebounds during his three seasons in the NBA. Irving has been ruled out for two weeks with a strained biceps, so hopefully we see a tweet similar to his first one appear on his page in the near future. Get back to schoolin’ those youngbloods, Uncle Drew!

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Tony Parker (@TonyParker)
Look, a Tony Parker tweet we can understand! We have to wonder what’s in Tony Parker’s mind when he sends out a tweet in strictly French, because most of us clearly can’t understand it. He does tweet in English once in awhile. His first tweet used English and French, just foreshadowing the future of his Twitter career.

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Dirk Nowitzki (@swish41)
Yes, Dirk, you are on Twitter! Dirk Nowitzki has never been big with the media, so it’s things like Twitter that allow us some insight on the sharpshooter’s life. Dirk will send out the occasional tweet in German, but his tweets are typically fun and enjoyable

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J.R. Smith (@TheRealJRSmith)
Could any Twitter list be compiled without J.R. Smith? That’s highly unlikely. Smith’s first tweet was launched in the summer of 2011, where he told the world to do what you feel is right. That’s great advice J.R., until you do things like this. Remember kids, just because it’s advice doesn’t mean it’s good advice.

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Anthony Davis (@AntDavis23)
Anthony Davis has exploded this season. He’s in his second year in the NBA and is creeping into the MVP discussions. Read that sentence over again. In a few years, Davis might be the best basketball player on this planet. Back in 2010, when his first tweet arrived, Davis was still in high school. Isn’t is amazing how much someone’s life can change in three years? Since then, Davis has indeed figured out how to work Twitter. He’s also figured out how to complete takeover the NBA–The Brow is on the prowl.

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James Harden (@JHarden13)
James Harden’s first tweet takes us back to the 2009 NBA Draft, where Harden was selected with the third overall pick by the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Memphis Grizzlies took Hasheem Thabeet before Harden and I’m positive they are still kicking themselves for that one. Harden has catapulted himself from being Sixth Man of the Year during the 2011-2012 season to attempting to lead the Houston Rockets to an NBA Finals berth alongside Dwight Howard. James Harden has prospered quite well since his first tweet.

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What do you think?

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