Mark Cuban's Mavericks role: Why former majority owner no longer controls basketball operations in Dallas
Mark Cuban's Mavericks role: Why former majority owner no longer controls basketball operations in Dallas
Mark Cuban's name has been synonymous with the Mavericks organization for decades. And while that may always be the case, Cuban's influence on the organization is no longer what it once was.
After purchasing the team in January 2000, Cuban agreed to sell his majority stake in the Mavericks in November 2023 and finalized the sale of 73 percent of the franchise one month later. At the time, Cuban was expected to retain full control of basketball operations, but new developments suggest that is no longer the case.
As the Mavericks reel from a loss in the 2024 NBA Finals, the focus will be on building a roster capable of delivering the franchise its second-ever NBA championship.
Here is why Cuban won't have much influence in that process, if any.
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Why Mark Cuban no longer controls basketball operations for Mavericks
Cuban was still present at Mavericks games during their Finals run but his presence was not nearly as loud as it once was during the early days of his ownership. That shift is symbolic of his influence on the team's basketball operations as well.
As the dust has settled from the sale, Cuban no longer has control of basketball operations in Dallas, according to ESPN's Tim MacMahon. General manager Nico Harrison, who assembled a roster capable of winning the Western Conference, now handles the Mavericks' personnel decisions.
McMahon added that this new organizational structure provides a much clearer sense of direction than there once was:
There is a clarity in the organizational flow chart that was murky in the past. Cuban, despite his claims after selling the majority share of the franchise midseason to the Adelson and Dumont families, no longer has control of basketball operations. Harrison reports to new governor Patrick Dumont, who is kept informed but has shown trust in Harrison to handle roster personnel matters. Dumont rewarded both Harrison and Kidd with multi-year contract extensions during this playoff run.
After the sale was approved in late December, Harrison got to work, pulling off two crucial deals ahead of the February trade deadline. In acquiring center Daniel Gafford and forward P.J. Washington ahead of the season's stretch run, Dallas positioned itself to make a deep run in the 2024 NBA Playoffs.
Despite the Mavericks' strong finish to the season, their run to the NBA Finals caught many by surprise. The franchise appears to be further ahead of schedule than it was and enters a crucial offseason as it looks to improve in the margins to make the jump from surprise contender to perennial contender.
As the NBA Draft and free agency quickly approach, it will be Harrison, head coach Jason Kidd and the Dumont family calling the shots in Dallas, not Cuban. That clarity could go a long way for the Mavericks moving forward.
MORE: How Mavericks' deadline additions fueled run to 2024 NBA Finals
Why did Mark Cuban sell the Mavericks?
Cuban decided to sell the Mavericks because of his understanding that there is "a future of NBA ownership where the advantages will be in real estate."
He explained the decision in a December interview with the Associated Press.
The advantage is what can you build and where and you need to have somebody who’s really, really good at that. Patrick (Dumont) and Miriam (Adelson), they’re the best in the world at what they do. Literally, around the world.
When you get a world-class partner who can come in and grow your revenue base and you’re not dependent on things that you were in the past, that’s a huge win. …
It’s a partnership. 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.
At the time, Cuban insisted that he would continue to have a hand in basketball operations, explaining that he'd have the final say in major decisions like hirings and firings, though that has shifted in the six months since the sale.
With the team's continuation of its winning ways, it's hard to find a flaw in the way things are now.