Why do Mavs' Fans Keep Giving Mark Cuban a Free Pass?

[Infinite Llamas]

He is not in charge, and we know he wouldn't have done it if he was in charge. I imagine he probably could have fired Nico for even suggesting this after that man hanged out with his friend Pelinka.
He sold majority of the team, not sure why, but I can't fault person for wanting to sell, it was his property, he has right to do that.

I do not fault George Lucas for Last Jedi, just because George Lucas sold his IP to Disney...

Thought of Last Jedi

Day instantly ruined lol

[og15]

I am having trouble reconciling Cuban's claim from just 15 months ago that he would maintain operational control and a partnership, to now claiming he doesn't have any control and didn't know anything about this trade. Cuban has likely entered in to hundreds of partnerships, if not thousands, and would certainly know enough to specify his operational control and duration in the sales contract.

Personally, the only billionaire owner I would trust fulfilling an "operational control agreement" from a minority stakeholder on a handshake would be Warren Buffet. Cuban's story doesn't add up.

Cuban thought that would be the case. It was mentioned by I believe Marc Stein when Cuban said that, that they didn't have anything in writing in the contract details, which is always a bad idea if you want to make sure something actually happens.

Then Cuban was slowly moved out of the daily decisions, but the team was winning, so why would he complain.

It was mentioned again a few months ago in an interview where he said, he doesn't make any decisions anymore, but of course the results (they had come off a finals) were not really one for him to argue against.

This is actually pretty common, especially if you don't get something in writing. You think you will have a specific role with the new regime and they give you the good old, "oh, no, no, sorry".

Now of course maybe if they had sucked it up early, he would have said something and tried to get his way back in, but why would he have made a stink about anything that was happening up until the Luka trade?

im with Crunch here....Mr SHARKTANK didn't put it in writing and expected it to happen? yeah sure...cuban knew...

and as this trade turns into the thing that takes the mavs from the finals to the lottery perpetually

Cuban was the one selling and there are rumors of reasons he wanted to sell from actually needing the money to political reasons. If he's getting a great deal, you think he's going to start being a stickler about, "it must be in writing that I will indefinitely have control on personell moves". Good luck for any minority owner pulling that off.

[wade44]

This is the GM YOU HIRED and the ownership group YOU SOLD TO. Trying to get off scotch free from this mess sounds very hypocritical

[Raps in 4]

This is the GM YOU HIRED and the ownership group YOU SOLD TO. Trying to get off scotch free from this mess sounds very hypocritical

Cuban is a dumbass. He traded Nash away, robbing Dirk (and Nash) of multiple titles. He later let a gambler run the team before replacing him with a shoe salesman. This guy is the definition of an idiot with money.

He also joint-lobbied the Texas legislature with the Adelsons to legalize gambling in the state, even before he sold the team. He was always a scumbag.

He was a trash owner that people are only glazing now because the Adelsons are the worst owners in professional sports.

[mrmsix6]

I can't help but laugh my ass off at anyone that believes they had a 'handshake deal' over something like operational control of the franchise in a multi-billion dollar deal, and that Cuban was under the impression that he was going to maintain control without having his authority explicitly outlined in the contract. If he did believe that, he's an idiot.

Cuban is not an idiot. Cuban is not being honest.

[JujitsuFlip]

This is the GM YOU HIRED and the ownership group YOU SOLD TO. Trying to get off scotch free from this mess sounds very hypocritical

The term is Scot-free

I'm sure Cuban has drank plenty of Scotch since the Luka trade, lol

[UcanUwill]

He is not in charge, and we know he wouldn't have done it if he was in charge. I imagine he probably could have fired Nico for even suggesting this after that man hanged out with his friend Pelinka.
He sold majority of the team, not sure why, but I can't fault person for wanting to sell, it was his property, he has right to do that.

I do not fault George Lucas for Last Jedi, just because George Lucas sold his IP to Disney...

Thought of Last Jedi

Day instantly ruined lol

Sorry, I understand...

[magee]

He sold because he didn't want to pay Luka the Supermax himself and make the tough decision to trade him because financially it didn't make fiscal sense to pay one player almost half the cap space available and not be able to build, and mainly keep, a title team around. Cashed out at the right time.

Like he said, they paid for that right to make the decision.

(Takes off tinfoil hat.)

A guy who is worth over 5 billion isn't worried about paying that.

Hence the (Takes off tinfoil hat) part of my post.

[Chuck Everett]

The stake Cuban sold was essentially worth 2.55 billion before capital gains taxes. He doesn't give a crap man. He won at life, won a chip as an owner. He's just paying people lip service. The fact that he still holds 27% ownership, but didn't sell out completely is a bigger tell. He could have easily held onto a majority stake while bringing on the Adelson's in some capacity.

The Lakers have Soon-Shiong and Anschutz as minority owners and they're multibillionaires too.

[Handlez]

Cuban riding that company line.

Scared these days.

Used to be a real one.

[bkkrh]

Sorry if someone already wrote it, but:
**** Nico Harrisson!!

+1, but need to add a **** the Adelsons too

Cuban hired Nico; he sold to the Adelsons - non basketball people, non Dallas people, and at the time of the November '23 sale, he specifically said he would be maintaining control over basketball operations (though he did not specify for how long). And the last public statement says he still owns 27% of the team.

And with regard to rumuors that the Adelson's want to move the team to Las Vegas, by contrast, when the Millers sold the Jazz, they searched for a local buyer, Jazz fan, who agreed in the sales contract to keep the Utah Jazz in Utah.

If I were a Mavs' fan, I would give Cuban a partial pass for reason of bringing a 2011 championship (which is something we've never got in Utah), but I would give Cuban an F on his partial exit. He sold to non basketball people and left you high and dry.

From AI Grok:

Spoiler:

Yes, at the time of his sale of the Dallas Mavericks to the Adelson family in November 2023, Mark Cuban explicitly stated that he would maintain control over basketball operations. The deal, which was reported to be in the valuation range of $3.5 billion, involved Cuban selling a majority stake to Miriam Adelson and her family while retaining a 27% ownership share. As part of this unusual arrangement, Cuban emphasized that he would continue to oversee basketball operations, despite no longer being the majority owner or the team's governor.
Cuban described the arrangement as a "partnership," noting that the Adelson family were not "basketball people," while he lacked expertise in real estate, which was a key motivation for the sale. He told reporters before a Mavericks game against Cleveland on December 27, 2023—the day the NBA approved the sale—that he would retain operational control, saying, "It’s a partnership. They’re not basketball people. I’m not real estate people. That’s why I did it." Reports from the time, including statements from Cuban and the Adelson family, consistently highlighted that he would keep full control of basketball operations, with Patrick Dumont, Adelson’s son-in-law, taking on the role of team governor and focusing on business aspects like potential real estate development.
However, Cuban did not specify a fixed "period of time" for how long he would maintain this control. The agreement was framed as an ongoing role rather than a temporary one, though later developments in 2024 suggested that his influence over basketball operations diminished, with General Manager Nico Harrison reporting directly to Dumont instead. At the time of the sale, though, Cuban’s stated intention was to remain in charge of basketball decisions without any indication of a limited duration.

Is Mark Cuban originally from Dallas or Texas? - No.

Did Mark Cuban have any kind of involvement or at least some publicly known interest in Basketball before he bought the Mavs? - No.

Where the Mavs the team with the worst winning percentage of the 90s, outside of the 95 expansion teams when Cuban bought them in January 2000? - Yes.

Did anyone expect that the Mavs were a future title contender, Dirk a future MVP level player, or Steve Nash even a future All Star at the time he bought the team? - No.

Is there any form of proof that the Adelson's are considering moving the team, outside the media bringing it up, simply because they own casinos and the Vegas is generally brought up as a future NBA franchise the last few seasons? - No.

Is there anything preventing the Adelson's from reselling or trading their Mavs ownership in case Las Vegas will have a future NBA franchise? No, see Joe Lacob selling his shares of the Celtics to become the majority owner of the Warriors, while his co-owner and vice chairman Vivek Ravadine went on to sell his shares in Golden State to become the owner of the Kings 3 years later.

Would the NBA board of Gouvernours agree to move a team that plays in one of the 10 biggest markets in the league, has one of the 10 busiest airports in the world and is a major tech hub that is currently raking in Billions of Dollars in AI and Cloud investments for the next years, while there are at the same time at least 10 teams in the league that would make way more sense to move instead? - Probably not.

Were there any publickly known local buyers that would have been an alternative option for this 3.5 Billion purchase? - No.

SInce you mentioned the Jazz sale. Ryan Smith is also not a Basketball person and he is also not from Utah. He studied and founded his company there. It was also relatively easy for the Millers to make a pro Utah decision, since Smith had tried for years to buy the team and they still got a very good offer for it, especially considering that Larry Miller had gotten 100% ownership by paying around 15 Milllion in total, plus a few Chrystlers and season tickets.

While you mentioned a part of his quote, you didn't put the full one. “It’s a partnership,” Cuban said. “They’re not basketball people. I’m not real estate people. That’s why I did it. I could have gotten more money from somebody else. I’ve known these guys for a long time. They’re great at the things I’m not good at.”

Just to point out as well, there were already reports in June that Cuban isn't really in charge any more. And it was presented as a good thing, going in the direction of Cuban actually being too involved and in charge for too long. So it's actually pretty ridiculous that some people in media a doing now another 180 degree turn now because of one trade they didn't like.

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/mavericks-mark-cuban-no-longer-has-control-of-basketball-operations-and-why-this-is-good-for-dallas-future/

So probably nobody besides him and the Adelson's can give you a real answer why he's less involved. A lot can happen in 6th months. It can just come down to the fact that he realized after the sale that he enjoys being less involved, in the end he is also 66 already.

Without of course knowing him personally, I still find it very unlikely that there was any ill will, greed. or other bad intentions from his side. He obviously put a lot of blood, sweat and tears in that team, doesn't really need the money and as he stated could have taken better offers. It also doesn't really fit the narrative based on how he has acted towards players like Dirk, or especially Delonte West, a guy who had played less than 50 games in total almost a decade earlier for the Mavs.

[The Laker Kid]

Cubes is part of the blame, but I'm sure had he known in advance that they will destroy the team, he would've had second thoughts about selling to the Adelsons.

[Raps in 4]

Cubes is part of the blame, but I'm sure had he known in advance that they will destroy the team, he would've had second thoughts about selling to the Adelsons.

No he wouldn't have. He made a $3.2 billion profit from selling the team to them.

[CobraCommander]

Cuban thought that would be the case. It was mentioned by I believe Marc Stein when Cuban said that, that they didn't have anything in writing in the contract details, which is always a bad idea if you want to make sure something actually happens.

Then Cuban was slowly moved out of the daily decisions, but the team was winning, so why would he complain.

It was mentioned again a few months ago in an interview where he said, he doesn't make any decisions anymore, but of course the results (they had come off a finals) were not really one for him to argue against.

This is actually pretty common, especially if you don't get something in writing. You think you will have a specific role with the new regime and they give you the good old, "oh, no, no, sorry".

Now of course maybe if they had sucked it up early, he would have said something and tried to get his way back in, but why would he have made a stink about anything that was happening up until the Luka trade?

im with Crunch here....Mr SHARKTANK didn't put it in writing and expected it to happen? yeah sure...cuban knew...

and as this trade turns into the thing that takes the mavs from the finals to the lottery perpetually

Cuban was the one selling and there are rumors of reasons he wanted to sell from actually needing the money to political reasons. If he's getting a great deal, you think he's going to start being a stickler about, "it must be in writing that I will indefinitely have control on personell moves". Good luck for any minority owner pulling that off.

been working in PE for nearly 2 decades and well if it isn't in writing, its not a part of the deal. and im telling you Mr Cuban gets everything in writing he wants...I mean really wants. he is a owner in sports but in the business world away from the TV BS, he was the Sabonis of business... you know...an all star...not an Allstar starter but my man can play...cuban doesn't sign a bad deal and anything he wants he puts in writing....WE ALL KNOW THAT...and im a bench player moving between the G and the 12th on the bench and I know it...Cuban knows it well...Plus the seller has a lot of leverage in a deal like this. Often the previous owners of major businesses will retain right to refusal or other provisions for a period of time because generally there is a true up of the finances that takes over a year...think of it as clearing the physical in sports for a trade...

[bkkrh]

This is the GM YOU HIRED and the ownership group YOU SOLD TO. Trying to get off scotch free from this mess sounds very hypocritical

Cuban is a dumbass. He traded Nash away, robbing Dirk (and Nash) of multiple titles. He later let a gambler run the team before replacing him with a shoe salesman. This guy is the definition of an idiot with money.

He also joint-lobbied the Texas legislature with the Adelsons to legalize gambling in the state, even before he sold the team. He was always a scumbag.

He was a trash owner that people are only glazing now because the Adelsons are the worst owners in professional sports.

Yes, the legendary Steve Nash trade. AKA He decided against long-term signing a 2 time All Star player that was 30 and had looked in comparsion to his previous 2 seasons a bit underwhelming, especially in the Playoffs, while Phoenix offered him a 5 year deal.

The Mavs went from a team that didn't have a winning record 10 seasons in a row, being twice in serious contention of breaking the record of least amount of wins during a season to a team that won at least 50 games for 10 seasons in a row and made it to the finals twice during that period, including one title from the first full season onwards he owned the team.

I don't think it's possible to be a more successfull owner in that sense. Of course he had a lot of luck that Dirk turned out to be the type of player he was. But on the other side there is a good chance that a different owner would have traded that weird soft Euro kid that can't rebound and block and plays like he is a shooting guard trapped in the body of a center for a real big.

[Beethoven]

That would be like selling a classical car to someone who does not collect cars or know how to work on cars and the new owner wrecking it.

Why would you blame the previous owner of the car for the new owner wrecking it? He sold the classic car in pristine condition, maybe one dent on the bumper (2024 Finals loss).

It's not the previous owners fault the new owner got drunk, spray painted the car then drove it 100mph into a brick wall.

Sure, you can say pick a better seller but the previous owner sold the car for top dollar, it is no longer his problem, despite building the car from the ground up and loving it.

Should he have given the car to his kids? Maybe but what is done, is done.

Im beginning to think most of these illogical threads are made from young people who havent processed life fully yet, or man child minds.

[MrGoat]

It's known that he knew of the Adelsons' plans for a casino resort arena for the team and he is also part of the push to legalize gambling in Texas so it's not like he's a good guy here and he should be shamed for selling the team to such people. But there's no such thing as a good billionaire. Really the NBA should be shamed for letting casino people buy a team at all, they could have blocked it because of the obvious potential conflicts of interest but they didn't

[Prince187]

Cuban should be called out for the fraud that he is. He pretends to be this really forward thinking progressive guy but then he sells his team to a group of genocidal Zionists

[Johnny Tomala]

I think there was a handshake deal that Cuban would remain a part of basketball operations that the other side didn’t honor. That’s not really Cuban’s fault. They won a championship with Cuban, and they’re mad at the current bozos running the team.

I do think Cuban should get more crap for not resigning Tyson Chandler after he anchored their championship defense in 2011, but that’s another story. They probably don’t win again but he completely punted on contending with Dirk ever again.

It was like in the movie The Founder

[Texas Chuck]

I don't know about passes, but his tenure as the Mav's governor was an unqualified success. So yeah if saying the good way outweighs the bad I guess I'm guilty.