Dec 21, 2016; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) reacts after missing a basket in the final seconds of the game with teammate center Rudy Gobert (27) against the Sacramento Kings at Vivint Smart Home Arena. The Sacramento Kings defeated the Utah Jazz 94-93. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports

Gordon Hayward’s wife recently posted an Instagram photo that sent both Utah Jazz and Boston Celtics fans alike into a tizzy.

The NBA offseason is always a crazy time of year. Trade rumors, mock drafts, free agency speculation – the guessing games just never stop. And any time anybody thinks they’ve found any sort of hint that might indicate what a player or team is up to, it usually turns into massive pandemonium on social media pretty quick.

Unfortunately, the Hayward family got a tough lesson on that just earlier today.

Robyn Hayward, the wife of Utah Jazz All-Star Gordon Hayward, posted a completely innocent picture on Instagram of her and her daughter Bernie snuggling with one another. However, NBA fans noticed a potentially subliminal message in the photo as the two-year-old was wearing a green shirt with a shamrock on it that read “Go Green” on the back.

See for yourself in the tweet below:

Forgive them for they know not what they do to the internet pic.twitter.com/PhPgOrFTfk — Angie Treasure (@snark_tank) June 12, 2017

Of course, in the blink of an eye, social media went into a craze taking the picture as a sign from the Hayward family confirming that Gordon will indeed be departing the Utah Jazz to join up with the Boston Celtics this offseason. Celtics fans came out in droves plastering the post with shamrock emojis (this isn’t the first time it’s happened either, trust me) and doing nothing short of celebrating what they suppose is a free agency victory.

Looooooool she knows what she's doing. Hayward to Boston confirmed https://t.co/a7T4Gd5iOL — Andrew Doxy (@ParaDoxy11) June 12, 2017

I didn't realize how annoying #Celtics fans were until I checked the comment section of Haywards WIFE'S Instagram. pic.twitter.com/QAFY30ywgl — Cole (@ColeSwan) June 12, 2017

While Celtics fans celebrated, an almost synchronized groan of dismay could be felt from Jazz fans. Here’s a few examples below from Twitter:

"She knows EXACTLY what she's doin" pic.twitter.com/z9M1dwpk7U — Reagan Nickl (@reagan_nickl) June 12, 2017

Haha poor mom can't even dress her kid without giving Jazz Nation a heart attack. Now that it's deleted it's even more concerning. — Take Note NBA (@TakeNoteNBA) June 12, 2017

It’s crazy to think how one simple and possibly innocent picture could cause such an uproar with varying emotions from two different fan bases, but hey, that’s what social media’s for, right?

My take? Gordon Hayward could very well be on his way out. But was this picture from the Hayward’s a signal of his sure commitment to Boston? I don’t think so. I honestly think it had nothing to do with his free agency thoughts.

More than likely, this was just one of many random shirts that a two-year-old would have and that Bernie happened to be wearing when the perfect photo-op moment occurred. While the connection to Boston is certainly there, it’s not like they snapped a photo of her in a Celtics jersey and I believe it to be merely a coincidence, nothing more.

Utah Jazz fans have billboards, Boston Celtics fans have shamrock emojis https://t.co/329wiotT6U #TakeNote pic.twitter.com/jbBLsgCO2k — Purple & Blues (@PurpleandBlues1) May 29, 2017

But that doesn’t change just how suspicious it looks, and what’s the internet without reactions and overreactions, right?

It should come as no surprise that Robyn already deleted the picture from her Instagram after all the attention it attracted. I’m not so sure whether that’s a good sign or a bad sign, so I’ll let you decide. I could be completely wrong and maybe this was a subtle hint from the Hayward family that they’ve got the Boston Celtics on the mind, but I have a hard time believing they’d be that devious about it.

If Hayward is on the fence, though, hopefully he’ll look at the Celtics’ avalanche of clover comments in the same way that this Twitter user below suggested:

Celtic fans have ruined social media for the Hayward family. "Hey let's just be annoying as hell and hope he picks us" — Brendo (@MrAnderson_93) June 12, 2017

As loony as it is to presume that a seemingly innocent picture of a girl in a clover shirt would signify a free agency decision, I have a feeling that the Gordon Hayward rumors are just starting to heat up and the best (or most crazy) may still be yet to come. While that photo could be nothing, or it could be something big, either way it’s definitely thrown fuel on the already burning fire of doubt and anxiety that exists among Jazz fans.

Free agency begins on July 1, and hopefully not long after that we’ll find out that Hayward is planning to stay put in Utah and then we can get an explanation from him on what this picture was all about.

But if he does leave for Boston, we likely won’t need much of an explanation at all…