NBA Fans in Utah didn’t exactly like a reporter’s tweet last Thursday after making a deadpan reference to a controversial political figure. Via X/Twitter, Scott Hughes didn’t hold back when he tweeted, “There is a SNIPER on campus at Utah Valley University,” in what should be a standard comparison of how Utah Valley’s Tyler Hendricks has been a sharpshooter beyond the arc this season, boasting a rate of 50.7%.
However, Utah Valley was also the site where Turning Point USA co-founder and right-wing activist Charlie Kirk had been assassinated last September, which brought confusion and chaos nationwide. And many NBA fans were once more revulsed when Hughes brought up Kirk’s death.
As one X user, @Memesandcards, commented, “I love dark humor but this just wasn’t funny.” In fact, many more expressed disgust over the post.
I love dark humor but this just wasn’t funny
— Cards and Crypto (@Memesandcards) December 31, 2025
“I love sarcasm and humor but this is not it. Sincerely a mom who answered a panicked call from her son who was running in a crowd of thousands from a sniper on the campus of UVU 112 days ago,” one wrote.
“Ohhh… Bad taste bro. Bad bad taste,” one remarked.
“Ok but this is an insane tweet and it’s not worth the views. Poor form,” one commented.
“Around the world, we are known for having horrific mass shootings, and this was your choice of words? Plenty of ways to get your point across without using this phrase,” one wrote.
NBA Fans turned a heated X report into brutal online exchange
To make things even more complicated, Hughes’ post, which was clearly a post meant to highlight Hendricks’ record-high season, had turned into a war between NBA fans who clearly disapproved of the reporter’s dark joke and those who had bought into it. Garnering over a whopping 13.3 million views, most of the post’s 1.4k comments were clearly heated.
At the post made by X user @Memesandcards, many retorted or simply made fun of the comment.
Onewrote, “You don’t love dark humor then. Snowflake p****,” or another onereplying, “You only love dark humor when it’s toward people you hate,” making it clear that the post was so political that some NBA fans were going too far just to attack users.
You don’t love dark humor then. Snowflake pussy
— Datpiff Diva 🐻↓ | 1/6/26 🇺🇸 (@JanSix2026) December 31, 2025
Amid the backlash, the focus on Hughes’ original topic, Tyler Hendricks, has been completely lost. Unfortunately, almost no one has mentioned his historic season at Utah Valley Wolverines, where he averaged double-digit points and minutes, setting a mark for his historic downtown shooting.
Unfortunately, Hendricks’ feat was overshadowed by the online discussion, which could be the best way to describe his accolade. However, some NBA fans who still haven’t moved on from Kirk’s death took this personally.
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Dan has been active in sports since 2016 and has worked behind the scenes as a scriptwriter for basketball, volleyball, and other sports. At a time, Dan has also been working as a sports commentator for CBA Pilipinas. During the pandemic, he has also been actively writing betting articles for CashBet and BetNow.
