In a way, Cuban is indirectly responsible for all of this, as I doubt he would sign off on this if he was still majority owner, and it might not have happened if he had sold to someone other than Adelson/Dumont. It seems pretty clear that the main goal for Adelson/Dumont is to get gambling legalized in Texas, and build a casino/arena resort for the Mavericks. Winning championships is a secondary goal.

In another thread, I said that I thought the "Mavs to Vegas" idea was crazy, but the more I think about it, this may not be so crazy after all. There has been little traction in legalizing gambling in Texas. Even if the legislature could be convinced to pass a constitutional amendment to legalize gambling, it would also have to be approved by the voters, and now you have a voting bloc in North Texas that might vote "no" simply out of spite.

If Adelson/Dumont see the writing on the wall that casino gambling isn't going to be legalized in Texas anytime soon, they could potentially try to buy out of their lease with the AAC, which currently doesn't expire until 2031. If they could find a way to break the lease, they could move the team to Vegas and build a casino/arena there. The NBA doesn't currently have a timetable for expansion, but they won't wait forever to get a couple of new teams in the league. If Adelson/Dumont moved the Mavs to Vegas, North Texas would move to the top of the list of expansion geographies, and it would likely be pretty easy to find a qualified buyer in the Dallas market that could care less about gambling and would simply want to own an NBA franchise.

txagman1998 said:

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In a way, Cuban is indirectly responsible for all of this, as I doubt he would sign off on this if he was still majority owner, and it might not have happened if he had sold to someone other than Adelson/Dumont. It seems pretty clear that the main goal for Adelson/Dumont is to get gambling legalized in Texas, and build a casino/arena resort for the Mavericks. Winning championships is a secondary goal.

In another thread, I said that I thought the "Mavs to Vegas" idea was crazy, but the more I think about it, this may not be so crazy after all. There has been little traction in legalizing gambling in Texas. Even if the legislature could be convinced to pass a constitutional amendment to legalize gambling, it would also have to be approved by the voters, and now you have a voting bloc in North Texas that might vote "no" simply out of spite.

If Adelson/Dumont see the writing on the wall that casino gambling isn't going to be legalized in Texas anytime soon, they could potentially try to buy out of their lease with the AAC, which currently doesn't expire until 2031. If they could find a way to break the lease, they could move the team to Vegas and build a casino/arena there. The NBA doesn't currently have a timetable for expansion, but they won't wait forever to get a couple of new teams in the league. If Adelson/Dumont moved the Mavs to Vegas, North Texas would move to the top of the list of expansion geographies, and it would likely be pretty easy to find a qualified buyer in the Dallas market that could care less about gambling and would simply want to own an NBA franchise.

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I think moving the team is unlikely. I think the league would likely block it. It's one thing to move a team because you didn't get a new arena. It's completely different to move a team because the state didn't legalize gambling. If gambling isn't legalized, it's much more likely they sell the team.

That's definitely a possibility that they just sell the team. However, if they can't build the casino/arena in Texas that they want and if because of the trade ticket sales fall and they lose revenue, they might be able to convince the league to allow them to move the franchise to Vegas, especially if the timing syncs with NBA expansion, making it easy to replace the Mavs with a new team in Dallas/Ft. Worth.

Unless the league had a handshake deal to not stand in the way of a relocation if somehow the most exciting superstar in the league wound up on the flagship franchise of the league…

Sharing this A+ analysis on the Luka trade by the always insightful @chris_kratovil

Makes a ton of sense to me from the #txlege angle - esp considering Lite Patrick likely done next Session.

Good stuff. Read it 👇🏼 #txlege #MFFL pic.twitter.com/VPtBPhgIeu

— Adam Loewy (@LoewyLawFirm) February 3, 2025

This is not a novel talking point and it ignores that NBA owners aren't ******ed and would look at them intentionally tanking a team as very bad form. It absolutely destroys the perception of the NBA.

That's the irony in all this, the roster as now constructed should still be competitive for the next couple of seasons. And yet, the fan base is so angry that winning may not cure all this time.

Lost me at AD is "broken down 32 year old", but Klay is a "major free agent". Too biased for me to believe any of it.

txagman1998 said:

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That's the irony in all this, the roster as now constructed should still be competitive for the next couple of seasons. And yet, the fan base is so angry that winning may not cure all this time.

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Winning is subjective, especially in the Wester Conference. The only thing that would make a difference in the fans view is a NBA Championship and that ain't happening

jeffdjohnson said:

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Cuban deserves more blame than he is getting. He has been in the business for a long time. He handed over the team to ignorant owners who don't know anything about basketball and a shoe salesman. No one else was left in the chain of command. If you want to sell high, then fine. But sell it to someone who will care and do right by the city. Add him to the list of people who should be booed every time they attend a game (Nico, Adelsons, Dumont).

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And he didn't even sell high. The price he got was lower than what most expected.

jeffdjohnson said:

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Cuban deserves more blame than he is getting. He has been in the business for a long time. He handed over the team to ignorant owners who don't know anything about basketball and a shoe salesman. No one else was left in the chain of command. If you want to sell high, then fine. But sell it to someone who will care and do right by the city. Add him to the list of people who should be booed every time they attend a game (Nico, Adelsons, Dumont).

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I agree. This isn't like someone having to sell their house in a limited time frame and pretty much have to accept the first offer that comes along.