By Jalon DixonShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberMark Cuban may no longer be the controlling owner of the Dallas Mavericks, but his name is once again circling the franchise’s future. According to NBA insider Marc Stein, a Dallas-based investor group has expressed interest in partnering with Cuban on a potential bid to repurchase the Mavericks from current governor Patrick Dumont.
Cuban sold a 73 percent controlling stake in the Dallas Mavericks in late 2023 to the Dumont and Adelson families at a valuation of roughly $3.5 billion, while retaining a 27 percent minority stake. At the time, Cuban suggested his day-to-day role would remain largely intact.
“Nothing’s really changed except my bank account,” Cuban said then. “I’ll still be overseeing the basketball side of it.”
That assumption has since been tested and largely disproven.
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From Adviser to Outsider
...Cuban still serves as an official adviser to Dumont, but league sources have made it clear his influence has been limited. Stein reported that Cuban declined to comment when reached on Monday, though his reporting adds a key wrinkle: Cuban’s remaining 27 percent stake can be reduced to just seven percent at the discretion of Miriam Adelson and Dumont within the first four years of ownership.
That backdrop matters given the organizational turbulence that followed the sale.
The most glaring example came in February 2025, when Dallas stunned the league by trading franchise cornerstone Luka Dončić less than a year after a Finals appearance. The deal, headlined by Anthony Davis, was completed without Cuban’s involvement. One team source told ESPN’s Tim MacMahon that Cuban had been “overselling” his role, and Cuban later acknowledged he learned of the trade only shortly before it was finalized.
“If the Mavs are going to trade Luka, that’s one thing,” Cuban said last March. “Just get a better deal.”
Fan backlash was swift, and the fallout eventually cost general manager Nico Harrison his job.
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Why Cuban’s Name Still Resonates
...Despite the chaos, Dallas caught a break by landing the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft and selecting Duke forward Cooper Flagg, a move that reset the franchise’s long-term outlook. Still, Davis played just 29 games for the Mavericks before being moved again, reinforcing concerns about direction and stability.
Stein cited a source close to Dumont saying, “The family remains excited about the future of the franchise and the Cooper Flagg era,” a statement that strongly suggests there is no appetite to sell.
That reality makes a Cuban-led return unlikely in the near term. Dumont and Miriam Adelson acquired the team less than three years ago, and the financial hurdle alone would be enormous, even for an investor group aligned with Cuban.
Still, the mere idea resonates with a fan base worn down by abrupt decisions and identity shifts. Cuban bought the Mavericks for $285 million in 2000 and became one of the league’s most visible owners. Whether this report is smoke or something more, it underscores a lingering truth in Dallas: the franchise has felt different since Cuban stopped running the show.
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