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Dad sends son brutal tough-love message with sign at NBA game
A parent earns “father of the year” accolades online after hoisting a tough-love sign at NBA game, urging his son, Thomas, to get his grades up. (Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

Dad sends son brutal tough-love message with sign at NBA game

While most NBA fans would more likely carry signs emblazoned with the names of their favorite players, one father is using the customary practice to teach his son a lesson.

An unnamed man is receiving quite a bit of attention on social media for his no-holds-barred sign, which he hoisted at the Cleveland Cavaliers-Charlotte Hornets game Friday night at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, CBS News reported.

Rather than targeting the players on the court — the father was sending a message home to his son, Thomas.

“Thomas get your grades back up and next time you’ll be here. Love, Dad,” the sign said, accompanied by the Cavaliers’ logo and a teary-eyed emoji.

The internet was quick to crown the mystery parent as “father of the year.”

The photo first began circulating when USA Today sports photographer Jeremy Brevard captured the image at the game and ESPN posted it to Instagram, where it has garnered more than 195,000 likes. The sports network captioned the photo: “Tough love.”

Some social media users took the opportunity to give Thomas some advice if he wants to end up at one of the NBA games in the future.

There were a few, though, who didn’t like the father’s parenting methods.

Kevin McGuire, a contributor for NBC Sports, speculated about what Thomas might be thinking, tweeting, “Maybe if Dad wasn’t spending time making a poster for an NBA game and helping me with my homework instead I’d have better grades.”

Another called the dad “whack” for “embarrassing his son,” adding that maybe he should spend his money on getting Thomas a tutor instead of going to basketball games.

The father appeared at another game Sunday, just a couple days after raising the first sign, this time for a Houston Rockets-Oklahoma City Thunder game, and it didn’t appear he was ready to let his son off the hook just yet.

TheBlaze Radio host Mike Opelka discussed the story on his radio show, “Pure Opelka,” Wednesday.

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