Mark Cuban says officials 'refuse to call' Anthony Edwards' FT violations

Mark Cuban is no longer the majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks, but he continues to be one of the most vocal owners in all of professional sports. He recently called out at Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards for what he believes is an illegal free-throw routine that goes uncalled.

Cuban was on the Road Trippin' podcast hosted by Channing Frye and Richard Jefferson. He was asked about officiating in the NBA, and he proceeded to, unprompted, say he's going to cause controversy by bringing up Edwards' free-throw routine.

"Watch Anthony Edwards when he takes a free throw shot," Cuban said. "Every single time he steps over the line. Every time. If you remember back in the day, I used to send in tapes on Shaq ... and they started calling it, and he had to fix his free throws. Anthony Edwards, ee had a game against [the Timberwolves] where they were up like 93-92, with a few seconds left. He steps over the line and then the ball goes in the basket. I'm like, this is the easiest call for a referee. Just watch to see if he steps over the line, and they refuse to call it."

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Cuban gave Edwards some props after his rant, saying that he's a great player and he loves his game, but reiterated that he needs to stay behind the line.

The official rule is that "the free throw shooter may not step over the plane of the free throw line until the ball touches the basket ring, backboard or the free throw ends." Edwards often steps forward after shooting but before the ball gets to the hoop, so Cuban isn't exactly wrong. But he's not the only one who does it.

NBA players routinely step into the paint on free throws, which should theoretically result in lane violation calls. The rules are loosely enforced on free throws, and you could poke holes in many other players' routines.

Edwards has shot 80.4% from the free throw line in his career, and he is coming off a career-high 83.7% mark during the 2024-25 season. Cuban is a prominent voice, so it'll be interesting to see if the NBA listens to him and forces Edwards to adjust his routine.