Isaiah Thomas and Isiah Thomas, forever confused


Isaiah Thomas is heading into his fifth NBA season, by this time he has at the very least made a name for himself. But unluckily for him, that name is a little too close to another great who once played his sport.

Off a year where he sparked the Celtics and almost won 6th Man of the Year, Thomas has proven to be one of the most effective undersized players the league has seen. He’s a unique talent and a relentless worker, but apparently it still isn't enough for some basketball fans.

Through it all Thomas still can’t seem to escape the notoriety of his name, prominently close to NBA legend and Hall of Fame inductee Isiah Thomas. The two bear no relation, though, with the name being placed upon IT after his father, a Lakers fan, lost a Finals bet when the elder Thomas’ Pistons took down the Lakers in the 1989 Finals.

His mother made a concession that the name should be “Isaiah” rather than “Isiah” to add some uniqueness and a biblical significance, but nevertheless confusion has persisted.

It’s a story Isaiah likely had to tell countless times growing up in the 90’s, or the day he joined the Sacramento Kings in 2011 after being the last pick in that year’s draft. But it’s become obvious ever since he intends on making his name one that sticks out from the Pistons legend.

So when a tweet came his way from an unintentional fan thanking Isaiah, or rather attempting to thank Isiah Thomas for a picture he took with her, the response was almost surely going to be drenched in sarcastic bitterness:



Well, that sarcasm wasn't taken lightly from this confused and outraged fan with the Twitter handle @highsteppin. She went on to rip the Celtics PG, who she didn't even seem to know existed when she sent the tweet, as well as question his lack of game as the reason for the confusion:



Thomas didn't seem too hurt by the jab, but at least felt the need to laugh it off:



The tweet would be the last one Isaiah sent acknowledging the situation, but from there Highsteppin was far from done with him. Sending out a whopping 28 tweets total towards Thomas in the aftermath; she continued to question who he is, asked him again and again to step his game up, passed along her number strangely enough, and demanded an apology.

All through the ordeal Thomas seemingly tuned her out and went about his business, while his “minions” as she put it ripped her for her complete unawareness of Isaiah as an NBA player himself. Once she finally figured that out, she boldly predicted that this year will be Isaiah's last and that he will quickly go broke in the aftermath:



I guess Isaiah still needs a little time to totally clear from Isiah. My personal favorite from the long-lasting rant, that may very well still be going, was when she claimed “it’s only 1 Isaiah Thomas as far as I’m concerned.” The intent there sure backfired with a typo.

So while Isaiah Thomas might not live up to the legacy of Isiah Thomas that @Highsteppin has placed upon him, I guess this no-name in her eyes can at least bask in the fact that he has more followers on Twitter than Isiah. Or that he hasn't become a disastrous GM, yet. Guess that’s a start.



Follow Bobby Manning on Twitter @RealBobManning

Photo credit: IGN
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