Despite agreeing to sell a majority stake of the Dallas Mavericks to the Adelson and Dumont families for reportedly around $3.5 billion, Mark Cuban still remains interested in running the team he's owned for nearly 24 years.
A report by Sportico.com states that Cuban will retain 25 percent ownership of the franchise, which is valued at $4.03 billion as a whole. Reportedly, Cuban still plans to be involved in the basketball operations of the team, taking on the title of "alternate governor" as opposed to the main governor role.
"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," said ESPN's Tim McMahon on the Brian Windhorst podcast.
The new majority owners of the Mavs – who also own Las Vegas Sands – have shown interest in lobbying the state of Texas toward legalizing gambling for the long-term plan of not only bringing casinos to Texas in general, but also potentially building a new Mavs arena to Dallas that will also be a resort and casino all in one.
With Cuban shifting away from the business side of the franchise in recent years, this deal allows him to keep his hands in the basketball side while allowing the Adelson family to deal with more of the business aspects with much deeper pockets.
With a reported Dec. 20 target date for final approval of the sale, the NBA's Board of Governors is set to vote on the matter before it becomes official. There appears to be no obstacles in the way of the deal, and it is expected to go through.
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