Why did the Adelson family buy the Mavericks? Governor Patrick Dumont explains

Dallas Mavericks new governor and majority owner Patrick Dumont (center) visits with fans before their game against the Washington Wizards at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, February 12, 2024.

The Dallas Mavericks’ new governor and majority owner, Patrick Dumont, spoke exclusively to The Dallas Morning News last week about all things Mavericks, bringing perspective, candor and surprisingly fresh emotion to what he calls the honor of succeeding Mark Cuban as governor.

“The fact that we’re even talking about this, it feels like I need to pinch myself,” he said.

Here, Dumont discusses why his family, including mother-in-law Miriam Adelson, wanted to buy a majority stake in the team, and how involved they’ll be with it.

Q: As you can imagine, there’s a lot of intrigue. Fans want to know who Patrick Dumont is. What are his plans? Why did the Adelson and Dumont families buy the Mavericks?

DUMONT (laughing): A lot of questions. Where would you like me to start?

Q: Let’s start with the big question: Why?

A: So I have to tell you, our family loves basketball. I’ve been a huge NBA fan since I was little. Growing up, basketball was the sport. We all played it. We all talked about it all the time. And this was this was before there was cable, to kind of date myself. We used to watch the networks on Sunday afternoon, the great battles that would occur. It was always just something that was part of growing up.

We had looked at buying other NBA teams, as a family, throughout the years. As I’m sure you are aware, many of them have come up. But we were always looking for the right situation, one where we felt we could connect with the local community, where there were good reasons for us to be there — and where we knew a little bit about it; we had someone to partner with.

And so we looked at some of the other teams. We’ve known Mark Cuban for a very long time. That’s part of what made this possible. I have to tell you, every one of my family loves basketball. My wife enjoys it. Our children love it. It’s just a lot of fun. I think it’s a great family sport. It’s something that people of all ages can play. It’s easy to find a hoop and a basketball. It really connects people.

I think the NBA creates an unbelievable experience for fans. It’s very exciting. And the opportunity to be a steward of a team like this is a dream. I never thought it would be possible. If you had told me 10 years ago that we would be stewards of the Dallas Mavericks, I would have said ‘That’s impossible.’ If you told me a year ago that was gonna happen, I would have said ‘No, way.’ It’s very exciting. It’s electric.

We’ve known Mark for a long time. And we’ve spent a bunch of time in Texas, hoping to be part of the business community there through our public company with our efforts with destination resorts. And we’ve always been talking with Mark. And so I think things just came together.

Q: When you mention that you have looked into buying other NBA franchises, what kind of timeframe are you talking about?

DUMONT: Probably a decade.

Q: Since the sale was approved by the NBA Board of Governors (on Dec. 27), has there been extra excitement in your house? Have you been watching a lot of Mavs games together?

DUMONT: Beyond. When Luka scored 73, I thought our house might fall down, with everyone screaming so loud. We’re very passionate about the team. We’re very excited about its success. It’s something that we’re very happy about. We’re all engaged. We’ll all be going to games. We’re looking forward to it and it’ll be fun.

Q: When news of the sale became public, I think there were people who wondered whether you and the Sands Corporation were kind of putting the cart before the horse. Because you guys identify as a gaming corporation and there’s no gaming in Texas. Was that a factor at all in coming into the Dallas market?

DUMONT: No. As a family, we’ve been wanting to be part of the Texas business community. We think it’s a great place to be. Dallas is a growing city. There’s a lot of positive factors in Dallas from the perspective of owning an NBA franchise. It’s probably a top-five market, could easily go into the top four in the next couple of years. There’s a lot of compelling reasons why this franchise has an unbelievable future in front of it. And it was incredibly compelling for us to invest with Mark and go ahead and do this. So, for us, the public company is something that we really focus on. But my position was our family decision to acquire one.

Q: Will we see a lot of Dr. Adelson? What will her role be?

DUMONT: I think she’s going to go to a bunch of games, with family and friends. I think she’s very excited about it. Basketball is a very exciting event. You can go with your family, your friends. You can text; you can take selfies. You can talk, you can scream, you can move freely around to order food. It’s a great environment to enjoy a sporting event. It’s not as rigid as other things. And it’s also it’s also a much closer-in and more intimate experience with the size of the arena. And the fact that you can, you can feel the electricity in the arena when the game is going on. Other sports have much more attendants than in our venues. For me, personally, I think the NBA is just a great experience. I think Dr. Adelson feels that way also. I don’t want to speak for her, but she’s very excited and will be supportive.

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