Marc Cuban Urged Nico Harrison To Not Trade Luka Doncic

[RealGM Wiretap]

Marc Cuban urged Nico Harrison to not trade Luka Doncic to the Lakers, sources told Marc Stein of The Stein Line.

Stein adds that by the time that Cuban found out about the deal, Harrison had already verbally agreed to the trade with the Lakers.

It was reported that Harrison operated in stealth due to potential backlash from the Mavs fanbase. 

Cuban also reportedly told Doncic for years that he wanted the guard to play for only the Mavs similar to Dirk Nowitzki. 

Via Marc Stein/The Stein Line

[Vegeta10176]

It was an ownership decision an ownership that Mark Cuban sold the team too.. So mark is a complete non factor here he has no say no power.. He sold the team he is done..

[puja21]

It was an ownership decision an ownership that Mark Cuban sold the team too.. So mark is a complete non factor here he has no say no power.. He sold the team he is done..

i wouldn't say complete non factor

He still owns almost 30% of the team and is the Alternate Governor

I'm sure he has input -- he just doesn't have authority

[danfantastk32]

It was an ownership decision an ownership that Mark Cuban sold the team too.. So mark is a complete non factor here he has no say no power.. He sold the team he is done..

i wouldn't say complete non factor

He still owns almost 30% of the team and is the Alternate Governor

I'm sure he has input -- he just doesn't have authority

This seems like an untenable position for Cuban. I think he will prob sell his other shares and leave. You can't care about the team like that, and then have someone else make huge decisions....decisions that you are against. I bet Mark asks to buy the team back (something we may never hear) and if thats a no-go, prob sells off and sets his focus elsewhere.

[Reeko]

It was an ownership decision an ownership that Mark Cuban sold the team too.. So mark is a complete non factor here he has no say no power.. He sold the team he is done..

i wouldn't say complete non factor

He still owns almost 30% of the team and is the Alternate Governor

I'm sure he has input -- he just doesn't have authority

This trade made it pretty clear that he has no input. No one consulted him about it.

[NavalAviator94]

Mark Cuban knew exactly what was going to happen when he sold to casino owners.

For those not in the know, the Adelson’s are pushing for legislation to approve gambling and to couple that with a new arena. If it doesn’t pass, they’re moving the Mav’s to Vegas.

Trading Luka starts that timeline and Cuban knows it.

[puja21]

Mark Cuban knew exactly what was going to happen when he sold to casino owners.

LIterally no one involved has indicated this, including Cuban himself

Tim Bontemps on The Hoop Collective, 12/1/23:
"I don't know exactly what the language is in the purchase agreement, but one thing I have been told, and the exact word I heard is Cuban will have basketball operations for quote forevermore. I assume that is agreed to in writing."

Marc Stein's the Stein Line from Nov 24:
“As he nears the one-year anniversary of the sale that ended his nearly quarter-century as the majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Mark Cuban did not attend Dallas' stirring victory Friday night in Denver. Nor will he be at Sunday night's game in Miami. Or Monday's in Atlanta. There is a simple explanation, Cuban said, for his dwindling presence at road games. The reason that he is no longer allowed to sit behind the Dallas Mavericks' bench, which has reduced the number of games he chooses to attend.”
Cuban to Stein: "You're right - I'm not there making day-to-day decisions. That's all Nico. That's just the way it's evolved. Honestly .. is it exactly the way l expected it to be? No. It's been up and down l've had moments of both - times where I was like, 'OK, this is what we need to do, but I'm not the boss.”

^does this sound like a man who gave up control willingly?

For those not in the know, the Adelson’s are pushing for legislation to approve gambling and to couple that with a new arena. If it doesn’t pass, they’re moving the Mav’s to Vegas.

This is extreme hyperbole of a conspiracy theory that's full of holes. I posted the entire "15 premise" theory from Twitter on an earlier post. If you read that and still agree this is part of a 'master plan' IDK what to tell you. Look at the twitter history of the guy who wrote that up. There are a million Occom's Razor answers better than this tinfoil hat guy's take.

There's a reason people write stuff like that... because people (like you here) willingly aggregate it for them. Conspiracies track. They get views. But they rarely hold up under even light scrutiny.

[maverick_41]

So now the Mavericks price is lower than it was before the trade and Cuban's share can be sold with discount, right? Maybe that was the idea of the trade?

[puja21]

It was an ownership decision an ownership that Mark Cuban sold the team too.. So mark is a complete non factor here he has no say no power.. He sold the team he is done..

i wouldn't say complete non factor

He still owns almost 30% of the team and is the Alternate Governor

I'm sure he has input -- he just doesn't have authority

This seems like an untenable position for Cuban. I think he will prob sell his other shares and leave. You can't care about the team like that, and then have someone else make huge decisions....decisions that you are against. I bet Mark asks to buy the team back (something we may never hear) and if thats a no-go, prob sells off and sets his focus elsewhere.

NBA franchises have risen in value more than twentyfold(!) since Cuban first bought the Mavs

(from 207M to 4.42B)

There aren't many investment options out there returning 85% annual growth per year.

[Pickled Prunes]

Part of the problem in DAL is that Cuban made friends (or thought he was friends) with the players. That makes the tough decisions near impossible.

[HotelVitale]

So now the Mavericks price is lower than it was before the trade and Cuban's share can be sold with discount, right? Maybe that was the idea of the trade?

Nah, fishing in weird waters there. It seems extremely unlikely that Cuban would say 'you know I really hated how you boned me on the Luka decision, let me do you a huge favor and sell my ownership stake to you for cheap.'

[maverick_41]

So now the Mavericks price is lower than it was before the trade and Cuban's share can be sold with discount, right? Maybe that was the idea of the trade?

Nah, fishing in weird waters there. It seems extremely unlikely that Cuban would say 'you know I really hated how you boned me on the Luka decision, let me do you a huge favor and sell my ownership stake to you for cheap.'

Of course. But maybe he planned to sell in the near future for financial or personal reasons.

Now the future of the team is murky, no generational talent, no playoffs, less income, higher payroll - the price trends down.

[danfantastk32]

NBA franchises have risen in value more than twentyfold(!) since Cuban first bought the Mavs

(from 207M to 4.42B)

There aren't many investment options out there returning 85% annual growth per year.

Good point. I suppose if he's able to mentally "step away". Maybe now that Luka is gone, it'll just be business for him.

[puja21]

Part of the problem in DAL is that Cuban made friends (or thought he was friends) with the players. That makes the tough decisions near impossible.

who can forget chandler parsons?

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/18059446/chandler-parsons-mark-cuban-bromance-threatened-mavericks

A young man with much at stake, out with his boss, might tread carefully. But to expect that is to misunderstand entirely the nature of Parsons and the nature of Cuban, simultaneously among the NBA's closest owner/player pairings, and least restrained.

"We're boys. We're friends," Parsons tells ESPN. "Yeah, he was the owner of the team, but I didn't look at him any differently [than other friends]. We did stuff. We enjoyed similar activities off the court. We were friends hanging out."

As the booze flowed, Cuban made joking low-ball offers, Parsons chuckled at them, and they eventually moved on. When it was almost time to make the short trip back to the Skirvin Hotel, Cuban was settling up the tab and posing for pictures with some of the wait staff, while the taxi the club's management had called for the owner idled in the alley out back.

Spotting the cab as he left with friends, Parsons saw an opportunity to get the last laugh. He hopped in with his boys, slipped the driver a $100 bill and told him to take off.

The timing worked to perfection. Just as the cab started rolling, Cuban walked out. Parsons rolled down the window and stuck out his head.

"Max or nothing, m-----f-----!" Parsons hollered at Cuban, cracking up his crew.

This is the behind-the-scenes tale of the NBA's biggest bromance gone wrong.

^Pausha Haghighi (left), the personal assistant and longtime best friend of Chandler Parsons -- who was added to the Mavericks staff by Cuban during Parsons' time w/ the team