Mark Cuban: Eastern Teams Know They Can Get By Doing Less

Post #1 » by **RealGM Wiretap** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 1:56 pm

Robert Sarver proposed seeding teams 1-16 for the playoffs by record regardless of conference three seasons ago. Mark Cuban pitched a temporary realignment plan.

"The commissioner's office was not interested," Sarver emailed ESPN this week. "The Eastern teams don't like it."

The league has argued that schedule imbalance and over-long travel make a 1-16 system problematic.

"It needs to be addressed," Cuban emailed ESPN on Thursday. "Seven of the 10 smallest markets are in the West. I really believe Eastern teams know they can get by doing less, and [in some cases] make the playoffs. Because they are larger markets, they will sell tickets and advertising, and get viewers. They get the best of both worlds."

Via Zach Lowe/ESPN

LaRance · Post #2 » by **LaRance** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 2:17 pm

a lot of these crap teams in the east would never make the playoffs which is good. it will force them to get better and get up to the West Level

Hoopzilla · Post #3 » by **Hoopzilla** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 2:25 pm

And Mark Cuban can make side deals with his best player and that is okay for some reason... Dirk opted out of a deal that would have paid him $25 million to accept a deal worth $5 million a year? There was obviously something else given in compensation or promised. Nobody turns down $20 million for no reason. This guy needs to shut his smug mouth and quit crying, he is just as snaky as anyone in the league.

JCruz6 · Post #4 » by **JCruz6** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 2:28 pm

And for those reasons, I'm out.

JCruz6 · Post #5 » by **JCruz6** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 2:32 pm

Hoopzilla wrote:And Mark Cuban can make side deals with his best player and that is okay for some reason... Dirk opted out of a deal that would have paid him $25 million to accept a deal worth $5 million a year? There was obviously something else given in compensation or promised. Nobody turns down $20 million for no reason. This guy needs to shut his smug mouth and quit crying, he is just as snaky as anyone in the league.

Players take pay cuts all the time, they're a dying breed but great players did it when they wanted to win.

Think that speaks highly of Dirk more than it does negatively for Cuban

Post #6 » by **Jeff Van Gully** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 2:38 pm

JCruz6 wrote:And for those reasons, I'm out.

well done.

i bet the mavs and suns don't like conferences. no complaints in the 90s though.

Hoopzilla · Post #7 » by **Hoopzilla** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 2:47 pm

JCruz6 wrote:
Hoopzilla wrote:And Mark Cuban can make side deals with his best player and that is okay for some reason... Dirk opted out of a deal that would have paid him $25 million to accept a deal worth $5 million a year? There was obviously something else given in compensation or promised. Nobody turns down $20 million for no reason. This guy needs to shut his smug mouth and quit crying, he is just as snaky as anyone in the league.

Players take pay cuts all the time, they're a dying breed but great players did it when they wanted to win.

Think that speaks highly of Dirk more than it does negatively for Cuban

I call horsecrap. Dallas will not be a contender this year and they will be lucky to be competitive. This was not a move for the team to stay competitive. Players like Dirk are a dying breed for sure, but Cuban is as slimy as they get. At this stage of Dirk's career, the Brinks trucks should be rolling up and thanking him for the contributions to the team as they get ready to rebuild. Don't try and sell me on a playoff run or anything other than Dirk chasing records, because that is all this season will be for the Mavs, Dirk's underpaid (on the books anyways) farewell tour.

Avirex357 · Post #8 » by **Avirex357** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 3:06 pm

I wish people took the the time to ACTUALLY READ and EDUCATE themselves before talking. Mavericks had a TEAM OPTION on Dirk for the last time!!! Jeez

Hoopzilla · Post #9 » by **Hoopzilla** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 3:19 pm

Avirex357 wrote:I wish people took the the time to ACTUALLY READ and EDUCATE themselves before talking. Mavericks had a TEAM OPTION on Dirk for the last time!!! Jeez

The team should have given him more than the $25 he was signed on for. They will not be contending this year, not even close. You give every penny you can to Dirk to thank him for his time and contributions. You don't cut him to $5 million and try and sell a playoff run. Dirk is going for records and the young players are learning to play. Dirk needed to be paid and there is no reasonable reason why he shouldn't be.

pwrshft99 · Post #10 » by **pwrshft99** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 3:30 pm

Hoopzilla wrote:And Mark Cuban can make side deals with his best player and that is okay for some reason... Dirk opted out of a deal that would have paid him $25 million to accept a deal worth $5 million a year? There was obviously something else given in compensation or promised. Nobody turns down $20 million for no reason. This guy needs to shut his smug mouth and quit crying, he is just as snaky as anyone in the league.

39 year old Dirk is far from the teams best player. Maybe it looks like he took a crazy loss but Dirk is the most popular Maverick ever. No doubt in my mind Cuban has a lifetime role lined up for him, that's easily going to dwarf whatever he is giving up over the next two years.

qm22 · Post #11 » by **qm22** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 3:47 pm

Uhh, Cuban is the guy who got by going after DeAndre Jordan as a franchise player and threw his cap and Dirk's paycut money at Chandler freaking Parson's.

An Eastern team that "gets by" by making the playoffs and being bad is usually going to stay as a treadmill team because they're not going to pick well. They may do better in a 1-16 system.

In the NFL teams do better traveling West to East, ostensibly due to timezone reasons.

His state has 3 WCF teams that have no income tax.

NBA players typically hate the cold and prefer living on the West... but OK, it's great to be an Eastern team.

DANNYLANDOVER · Post #12 » by **DANNYLANDOVER** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 3:53 pm

He must be talking about owners like Ted Leonsis of house Wizards; king of mediocrity!

the_process · Post #13 » by **the_process** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 3:57 pm

Basketball and hockey both should do this, and just seed their teams 1-16 for the playoffs. They can still use "divisions" and "conferences" to determine regular season schedule.

hyberx · Post #14 » by **hyberx** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 4:26 pm

Cuban is right about this one. With Butler/PG/Millsap going West, the minor league East just became the D-league+ this year. Gordon Hayward didn't and make all star team and now he is the 2nd player in the East with a sure trip to All Star. This imbalance is just pathetic and Adam Silver does't even want to talk about it.

Avirex357 · Post #15 » by **Avirex357** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 4:29 pm

Hoopzilla wrote:
JCruz6 wrote:
Hoopzilla wrote:And Mark Cuban can make side deals with his best player and that is okay for some reason... Dirk opted out of a deal that would have paid him $25 million to accept a deal worth $5 million a year? There was obviously something else given in compensation or promised. Nobody turns down $20 million for no reason. This guy needs to shut his smug mouth and quit crying, he is just as snaky as anyone in the league.

Players take pay cuts all the time, they're a dying breed but great players did it when they wanted to win.

Think that speaks highly of Dirk more than it does negatively for Cuban

I call horsecrap. Dallas will not be a contender this year and they will be lucky to be competitive. This was not a move for the team to stay competitive. Players like Dirk are a dying breed for sure, but Cuban is as slimy as they get. At this stage of Dirk's career, the Brinks trucks should be rolling up and thanking him for the contributions to the team as they get ready to rebuild. Don't try and sell me on a playoff run or anything other than Dirk chasing records, because that is all this season will be for the Mavs, Dirk's underpaid (on the books anyways) farewell tour.

Dirk took the discount with the 2 year $16 million deal, which was basically $8 mil a year for 2 seasons while they were still trying to compete. Not that anyone was running out to give Dirk tons of money. Cuban then blessed him with a $25 million deal due to the salary jump and the fact that he wanted to hook him up which was super generous and was a farewell deal. I will never understand the concept of just continuing to pay someone through the twilight of their careers as if they weren't getting paid before. I'm well aware of his history in Dallas but he played and was paid well throughout his career. The only dude i've seen consistently leave money on the table for his team in this day and age is Udonis Haslem on at least 2 different contract situations in the prime of his career when he was never getting paid THAT much compared to others. Cuban is now giving him another $10 million on a two year deal with a team option in 2018, lets see what they do then, for all you know they opt him in and let him retire and STILL pay him the $5 mil for 2018-2019

andrewww · Post #16 » by **andrewww** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 5:04 pm

LaRance wrote:a lot of these crap teams in the east would never make the playoffs which is good. it will force them to get better and get up to the West Level

The problem is, someone's gotta make the playoffs meaning they WONT get better at the same rate as the non playoff teams in the west. People keep missing this major point all the time.

colaroaster · Post #17 » by **colaroaster** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 5:07 pm

cuban's a cnbc puppet - willing to say anything for air time

nomansland · Post #18 » by **nomansland** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 8:07 pm

qm22 wrote:
In the NFL teams do better traveling West to East, ostensibly due to timezone reasons.

I'd like to see some stats on that. I know for a fact that the Seahawks struggle on the East coast and they reason often given is the time change.

Living on the West coast it's always harder for me to travel east for meetings and what not because they effectively start a lot earlier than I'm used to.

And the NBA is different because players can adjust during 5 game road trips.

And finally overall the East has had a travel advantage for decades simply by having more teams in the same time zone and much shorter distances to travel overall.

Diggr14 · Post #19 » by **Diggr14** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 8:25 pm

Didnt he just pick in the top 10 and make a salary cap circumventing deal with Dirk?

Yeah... last person to be talking, per usual.

IAMZOOTED · Post #20 » by **IAMZOOTED** » Fri Jul 7, 2017 8:53 pm

Hoopzilla wrote:And Mark Cuban can make side deals with his best player and that is okay for some reason... Dirk opted out of a deal that would have paid him $25 million to accept a deal worth $5 million a year? There was obviously something else given in compensation or promised. Nobody turns down $20 million for no reason. This guy needs to shut his smug mouth and quit crying, he is just as snaky as anyone in the league.

Dude, it was a team option, Dirk did not opt out, he didn't have the option of opting out.