Bombastic Mavericks owner Cuban represents the ugly future of pro sports America is choosing glitz and trash talk over the beauty of sport By Sam Smith, SportsWritersDirect CHICAGO (Nov. 17) -- Call it the Mark Cuban outrage of the week. One week it's a verbal war with Lakers coach Phil Jackson or owner Jerry Buss. Another week, he's announcing he'll be grading the referees to determine which ones appear biased against his Mavericks. Why? To bribe them? Threaten them? And always there's Cuban, sitting courtside screaming like a crazed fan, yelling at the referees and opponents, and then, because he is the owner, being able to leap into the arms of Michael Finley after a game-winning shot in a crazed team celebration. This week he is fined $5,000 for berating officials, he acknowledges he deserves the penalty, and then he blasts referee Hue Hollins as he leaves the court the very next game. The conventional notion has been that Cuban's behavior rates somewhere between embarrassing and undignified. After all, he is the owner of a professional sports team, a multimillion-dollar business that also acts as a civic treasure in most places. Sure, George Steinbrenner is wacky -- and he has fought his way out of the occasional elevator -- but even he isn't running onto the field, challenging officials during the game, mocking and taunting opponents. Because the owners essentially are partners, after all, sharing revenues, as all sports do in some form. But it may just be that Cuban, the self-promoting Mavericks boss, is in the vanguard of a new breed of sports owner, in fact, the prototype for the future of American professional sports. There's no question that pro sports is suffering in the United States. Attendance for the major sports has flattened out, even with the impetus of new stadiums and arenas opening annually. Opening night numbers in the NBA were frightening, even though league-wide the totals remained about constant. Arenas in seemingly slump-proof places with good teams, such as Utah and San Antonio, experienced all-time arena lows. There are many excuses, like additional entertainment choices, increasing prices to pay the escalating salaries, the loss of captivating stars like Michael Jordan, and exact-change lanes in many arenas. OK, not the latter, but it seems there's always something. The big problem, though, may be there's just no buzz anymore. Cuban creates a buzz. And buzz is what it's all about, isn't it? The NBA started this, after all, with just about every circus act imaginable performing during timeouts. Games cannot begin without a fireworks display, it seems. There are dancers, singers, jugglers and fans acting stupid. See, not just owners. When all this began in the NBA about a decade ago, the Boston Celtics resisted. Teams have to file a nightly report on entertainment activities during a game. The Celtics' advisory used to read: "Ballboy rolls ballcart out to halfcourt at halftime." That was it. It was about basketball: Watch the game, talk about the game. It was all about the game. But the NBA decided that it was all about an entertainment experience. So there were bands at the door when you came into an NBA game, and a light or laser show before the game, then contests during timeouts. The loudspeakers were pumped up enough to be sending radio signals to Pluto. So, really, Mark Cuban may be just the natural evolution of the NBA entertainment experience. He is the performing owner, the sideshow to keep the fans interested, to get their attention. The notion is the Mavericks are a better team thanks to Cuban's aggressive stance and interactive nature. Not so, really. The Mavericks are a potential playoff team this season for the first time in a decade. But they might have made it last year if not for Cuban's ill-fated experiment with Kato Kaelin Rodman. The Mavericks were in playoff contention last season until Cuban signed Dennis Rodman, put Rodman in his outhouse, or coach house, or wherever, and the Mavericks lost 11 of 13 and didn't right themselves until after Rodman was released. By then, it was too late to make the playoffs. After years of being out of the playoffs, a team must be able to fall into enough talent to make a run at the final playoff spot. Which is just where the Mavericks remain now. Yet, one gets the feeling in Dallas there's much more to it than that. Because Cuban says there is. And he's always doing something. It's really like the WWF of basketball. Rivalries are created, opponents are threatened and challenged. Officials are mocked. And who really cares about the outcome. The Mavericks still are about a .500 team. Do they deserve that much more publicity? But they get it. Perhaps what Cuban understands is that Americans are growing tired of conventional professional sports. They want more. They wanted Jesse Ventura for governor in Minnesota, didn't they? Just having someone to govern wasn't enough. Even those conservative Midwestern souls seemed not only to want someone to stand up to the legislature, but someone to knock out a legislator or two. Why is there an XFL starting next season, a football league in which it appears there will be body bags on the sideline? I see my son's video games, and the most popular sports game appears to be a football game in which the players commit unsportsmanlike conduct penalties on every play by slamming down an opponent, jumping on him and then dancing around. Maybe it is what America wants now. Maybe Mark Cuban understands and the rest of us don't. Be afraid ... be very afraid. ------------------ Only in America....do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries, and a diet coke.
I like Cuban,he`s a breath of fresh air.I look at him as a fan who was lucky enough to buy his hometown team,he gets as pumped up as the fans in the arena.Of course he`s going to make mistakes,but overall I`m very impressed with his desire to make the mavs a good team to watch and play for. ------------------
I think Cuban is just like any of us would be if we owned a team. He's a fan. Lets face it, if any true Rockets Fans owned the Rockets, we'd be there on the side lines telling Karl Malone what a dirty player he was. We would question the refs and the calls they make. We would do everything to make players want to come and play for the Rockets. He's just a true sports fans who is lucky enough to have the $$$ to buys the team he follows. Just on the fines the NBA hands out. They give a guy who owns a franchise that costs hundreds of millions of dollars a $10,000 fine? NBA fines are the biggest joke on Earth. ------------------ Your Starting Power Forward for the Clutch City Allstars My Expert Opinion Of Steve Francis:Mate he is a special player!
While I respect Cuban's freshness, comparisons to him and Joe Q. Averagefan are gross undersights. Cuban is a hard-driven, competitive businessman with the expected ego to match. He in NO WAY resembles the average fan in the stands. One or even two transgressions can pass as "fan" enthusiasm. Repeated misbehavior is brat-like Yuppy-ism at it's worst. ------------------ GATER [This message has been edited by GATER (edited November 23, 2000).]
He doesnt have an ego. He, like any true business man, went into something with all he had.Unlike most smug owners who dont interact with the fans and players, he embraces his role and shows that it is fun to own a team and not just a business in which to make money.Whats wrong with scouting refs?Its a great idea and he has offered to show his findings to the nba. Many referees do hold grudges against coaches and or players which is a sad thing.He is definitely good for the league.He really is a more visible and freewheeling pat croce ------------------ www.truebballfansite.homestead.com
In the blowout by SAC, no Mavs player had more than 4 PF's and the Mavs had only 2 more fouls total than the Kings. SAC out shot them 53.4% to 40.4%, the Mavs were 1-9 from 3ville, were outrebounded 51-43 and the Kings led in assists 32-17. In the PHX loss, the Mavs had 2 players with 4 PF's while PHX had 1 with 5 and 3 with 4 personals. Phoenix had 25 PF's to Dallas' 21. The Mavs took 3 more free throws. In almost every other category, the Suns dominated the Mavs (like shooting 51.8% to 38.7%). In the Mavs loss to Seattle, they again took more FT's than the opponents. Bradley and Davis ended with 5 PF's each. For the Sonics, Payton ended with 5 and Rashard Lewis fouled out. Perhaps Cuban should chart aspects of his teams performance as well who called what when and against whom. A billionare businessman with no ego....I think not. I hope I haven't offended you guys too much so that you won't let me tag along the next time Mark invites you over to watch a game on the big screen TV. ------------------ GATER [This message has been edited by GATER (edited November 25, 2000).]
