Dallas Mavericks former majority owner Mark Cuban, who still holds a minority stake, has blasted the team’s new leadership for how the Luka Doncic trade to the Lakers went down last month.
Doncic, who was viewed as the cornerstone of the Mavericks, went from Metroplex untouchable hero to playing for another team in a matter of moments.
Cuban, who sold 73 percent of the team to the Adelson family in 2023, still is a minority owner. He reportedly told the Mavericks to hold onto Doncic when he got word of the trade, but it had already been verbally agreed to.
Dallas received Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick to send one of the NBA’s best to a Western Conference rival.
‘If the Mavs are going to trade Luka, that’s one thing, just get a better deal,’ Cuban told WFAA. ‘I still firmly believe if we had gotten four unprotected number ones and Anthony Davis and Max Christie, this would be a different conversation.’
In the weeks since the trade, the Mavericks have had horrible luck with both Davis and Kyrie Irving go down with long-term injuries.
Cuban has blasted the team’s new leadership for how the Doncic trade went down last month
Dallas received Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a pick to send one of the NBA’s best away
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Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison has faced protests and calls for his firing ever since the Doncic deal was publicized. Cuban understands the frustration.
‘Yeah, there are parts that are not fun, obviously,’ Cuban said. ‘Especially this month, or last month. But, you know, they paid for that right.’
Yet, the ‘Shark Tank’ star has no regrets over a year since the sale was finalized about walking away from being the No 1 guy in the Dallas front office.
‘I don’t want my kids to end up in this exact position, at some level, if they made a mistake,’ Cuban added. ‘Imagine if I didn’t [sell], and my kids had taken over and they made a mistake like this.’
The Mavericks currently sit in 10th place in the Western Conference, the final spot that gets entry into the Play-In Tournament after losing five of their last six games.
