Mark Cuban Says He Has 'No Regrets' over Failed Bid to Buy Cubs Franchise

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban tried and failed to purchase the Chicago Cubs when they went up for sale in 2007. Cuban believes the outcome was ultimately a blessing in disguise.

"No regrets at all," he said in an interview on 670 The Score's McNeil & Parkins Show. "And the reality is, when I was going into it (in 2008), my kids were really young. Now they're 10, 13 and 16, and they're too much fun. And between 82 games for the NBA and 162 games (for MLB), plus the playoffs for both, I would've missed a whole lot of them growing up that I'm glad I'm not missing."

The Tribune Co. announced in April 2007 it intended to sell the Cubs following Sam Zell's purchase of the company.

Cuban's pursuit of the franchise was probably doomed from the beginning. He has never been shy to speak his mind, amassing a number of fines from the NBA. He was docked $500,000 in March, bringing his total to more than $3 million since becoming the Mavericks' owner.

A source told the Chicago Sun-Times in November 2008 (h/t ESPN.com) there was "zero chance" that MLB commissioner Bud Selig and the other owners would sign off on Cuban taking control of the Cubs.

Joe Ricketts eventually paid $845 million for the Cubbies in October 2009.

The move has worked out well for the Ricketts family.

They oversaw the end of the Cubs' World Series drought when Chicago defeated the Cleveland Indians in the 2016 Fall Classic.

The team's value has rocketed over the past decade and change, too. Earlier in April, Forbes estimated the Cubs to be worth $3.2 billion, the fourth-highest valuation in MLB.

Weep not for Cuban, though. The Mavericks, whom Cuban bought for $285 million in 2000, were valued at $2.4 billion in February by Forbes.