The Cubs and Wrigley Field are for sale, and the first round of bidding was recently completed. Three groups have bid over a billion dollars for the entity, and the leader in the clubhouse is Dallas Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban. His bid of $1.3 billion trumps the field so far. The prohibitive favorite, John Canning, was endorsed by MLB Commissioner Bud Selig but did not make the cut.
The other two groups in the running are the founders of what is now TD Ameritrade and a sports holding corporation. The latter group involves a congressman and Henry Aaron. It is kind of like the group formation which allowed Jay-Z to be an owner of the New Jersey Nets.
Many Cubs fans are hoping and praying that Cuban wins out. His energy and commitment to his team is unmatched. Many Cubs fans believe he could elevate their team to a level above the curse, like John Henry did with the Red Sox. It has already reached the point where there is a website campaign: cubanandthecubs.com. (the picture for the article comes from them)
Fans in Dallas heavily endorse Cuban with good reason. The Mavericks were an NBA bottom feeder for years before he took over. In the 90s, the Mavericks struggled despite having talent like Jason Kidd, Jamal Mashburn, Michael Finley, and Steve Nash. Cuban was a Mavs fan and decided to step in himself. On January 4th, 2000, Cuban bought the team.
And unlike the Washington Redskins and Owner Daniel Snyder, Cuban has brought on success with his favorite team.
In the first year of the Cuban era, the Mavs went 40-42. It was their best record since the 1989-1990 season.
The next year, the Mavs exploded. Dirk Nowitzki became a household name. The Mavs went 53-29, finishing fifth in the Western Conference. Nowitski became the first Mavs player ever to earn All-NBA honors. The Mavs were finally capitalizing on their talent.
The year after that, the Mavs started the year 14-0 and tied for the league’s best record. They made the Western Conference finals but lost to the San Antonio Spurs.
Two years later, the Mavs were in the finals and up 2-0 against the Miami Heat. They had a 13 point lead going into the fourth quarter and were minutes away from a 3-0 lead. Then Dwayne Wade arrived and the Mavs lost that game and the next three games to blow the finals. The team was irreperably damaged.
The honeymoon in Dallas was over.
The next year, the Mavs went an outstanding 67-15 and won 52 of 57 at one point during the season. Then the playoffs started. The Golden State Warriors were led by Cuban’s nemesis in former Mavs Head Coach Don Nelson. Baron Davis and the upstart Warriors tore the hearts out of the seemingly unbeatable Mavs. They dominated the Mavs and won the series 4-2, becoming just the third team ever to beat a number one seed in the opening round. And they didn’t just beat them. They dismantled them. They won the four games by 12, 18, 14, and 25 points.
The psyche of the Dallas squad was absolutely shredded at this point. This is also when whispers began about Cuban thinking of selling the Mavs.
11 comments Last one added 11 months ago — Leave a Comment
Tony Bishop 11 months ago
As a Cubs fan, I'm flat out salivating over the prospect of having Cuban as our owner. You explained that feeling very well.
I think baseball is more suited for Cuban anyway. He wants to spend money to make money and in the NBA he has that pesky salary cap holding him back. In baseball, though? He'd easily become the next Steinbrenner.
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David Cohen 11 months ago
only I don't see a Billy Martin situation, lol.
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Ricky Butts 11 months ago
*crosses fingers*
Great article, pick of the day!
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Taylor Gram 11 months ago
This is a good article but with the heart a devotion Cuban puts into his team I see him being able to manage the teams.
And maybe a little break from the Mavs couldn't hurt. Don't get me wrong, I live in Dallas and love the Mavs and Cuban but like the other owner in the city Jerry Jones, sometimes he gets too involved and really messes things up like the Don Nelson situation.
No, I don't want to see Cuban buy the Cubs but I wouldn't be devastated if it happens.
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BigL BigL 11 months ago
How sad is it when a sportswriter misspells the name of a NBA superstar.
That alone makes you wonder if the whole article is worth the time to read it....
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Jay Covington 11 months ago
Simply rediculous. So much of the "article" is completely nonsense. There are not any whispers, and haven't been any whispers, in Dallas of Cuban selling the Mavs. None. Period.
The man owns and opperates over 40 companies right now, including HDNET, and Magnolia pictures, and you think he can't add the Cubs to that list without having to sell another asset??? Have you not paid any attention to pro sports in the US at all?
There are pleanty of examples of owners that own more than 1 pro franchise. Some own 3 or 4 when you throw in MLS and Arena Football. Several own teams in states that they don't live it... there are even examples of owners that don't even live in the US owning more than one pro franchise.
How utterly naive it is to think that a mult-billionaire couldn't handle owning 2 franchises at that same time.
For a more detailed explaination of this from someone that has been covering Dallas sports for 18 years and has several very close connections to the Mavericks and Mark Cuban... read here: http://www.dallasbasketball.com/fullColumn.php?id=525
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J. Michael Morris 11 months ago
Pathetically pimping your own site on this message board wins you the PRICK OF THE DAY award.
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Alex McVeigh 11 months ago
This is utter hogwash. When has there ever been a hint of Cuban wanting to sell the Mavs, except when reporters ask him?
He's not going to sell them. As a founder of several multi-million dollar enterprises, Cuban knows a thing or two about multi-tasking.
While his day-to-day role might be diminished by the fact that there are only 24 hours in a day, Cubes can follow the Mavs from October to (hopefully) late June, and the Cubs from then until October.
From a purely business standpoint, Cuban would be foolish to sell the Mavs. He took a three-sport city that only cared about football, and turned Mavs games into a hot commodity.
If he does get the Cubs, he should print up shirts with the "typo" Chicago Cubes. Plus, if they do well, the puns will write themselves. "Mark Cubbin'" is just the first one that comes to mind.
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mark murrell 11 months ago
Thanks for promoting my site! Email me: mark nowinchicago.com
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J. Michael Morris 11 months ago
Good article, I do like the logic that Mark Cuban has lost interest in the perpetually underachieving Mavericks. Especially since he hates the NBA commish. How long to you stay in a job when you hate the boss. Cuban is a maverick in business and will not hesitate to sell an entire successful company for a better opportunity. It's the Chicago freakin' Cubs. Easy decision.
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Andrew Ungvari 11 months ago
The only problem is that Jerry Reinsdorf will make it his goal in life to prevent this from happening. Why would he want to compete in the market with another willing to spend over $200 million/year on his team payroll.
Reinsdorf has owned the White Sox since 1981. I'm sure he's close with enough of the older owners to convince them to vote NO as well.
The Yankees, Tigers and Red Sox might vote NO just because they wouldn't want to get involved in bidding wars with Cuban.
The Cardinals, Astros, Pirates and Brewers might vote NO because the Cubs are in their division.
Cuban might sue but it's still a long ways away.
If he does get to own the team then I think he sells the Mavs. If he owned a television network that broadcast the Cubs games then it would be a different story. But the same guy that is selling him the team is the same guy that owns the network and he's never gonna sell it.
The Mavs are in horrible financial shape. I wrote about Cuban selling the Mavs on May 9th. I linked in this article by Sam Smith from Hoopshype:
http://blogs.hoopshype.com/blogs/smith/2008/05/06/time-to-go/
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