Reasons to Believe the Mavericks' Ownership Change Rumors With Mark Cuban

A fascinating story came out on Monday from NBA insider Marc Stein, who reported that an "unidentified Dallas investor group" is looking to partner with Mark Cuban to buy the Dallas Mavericks back from Miriam Adelson and Patrick Dumont.

As of now, Cuban is a minority owner, holding about a 27% stake in the team after selling his majority share in late 2023. And the team has gone downhill almost ever since. The timing of this report is interesting, and here are some reasons why these rumors may be valid.

Jun 27, 2025; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont arrives at a press conference at the Dallas Mavericks Practice Facility. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Who is Trying to Add Pressure to the Situation?

When a report like this surfaces, it usually means one of two things: Mark Cuban and his group are trying to add pressure to the Adelsons to sell the team back, or the Adelsons are trying to open up the bidding and get more money in a sale.

More than likely, this is Cuban and his group going through Marc Stein to add some fuel to a fire, as Cuban and Stein have a great working relationship, and the statement Stein got from a source around Miriam Adelson and Patrick Dumont seems to back that up. If the Adelsons really wanted to make it difficult, they have the option to trigger a clause where they can buy the majority of the rest of Cuban's ownership, getting him down to 7%. That could make negotiating tricky.

The Timing of the Report...

There have been a lot of expansion rumors for the NBA over the last few years. The league is loaded with talent, and most of the smoke has been about giving Seattle the SuperSonics back and adding a team in Las Vegas, where the NBA likes to conduct business. The NBA Summer League has been held there for more than 20 years, and they've started hosting the NBA Cup Semifinals and Finals in Vegas.

Those rumors were stoked further by Brad Townsend, a writer for the Dallas Morning News, reporting after the Super Bowl, "Think it's going to be an extra-great year for Seattle. I'm hearing NBA Board of Governors likely to vote on expanding by two teams this summer and Las Vegas and Seattle are favored."

And why is Las Vegas getting a team important?

Think it's going to be an extra-great year for Seattle. I'm hearing NBA Board of Governors likely to vote on expanding by two teams this summer and Las Vegas and Seattle are favored.
— Brad Townsend (@townbrad) February 9, 2026

Miriam Adelson Won't Get Her Casino in Dallas

A big reason why Mark Cuban sold the Dallas Mavericks to begin with is that he knew a new arena would be needed, and he's "not in the real estate business." The Adelsons are, and they already own a large amount of land in Irving, Texas, that they could use to build a new arena. But they wanted one thing when building a new arena: attach a casino to the arena.

That has hit a serious snag, as it does not seem like Texas legislation plans on passing legalized gambling any time soon. The Adelsons have done their fair share of lobbying for it, but it doesn't help that the ownership nuked the current state of the Dallas Mavericks.

Any goodwill they were trying to build likely went out the window the second Patrick Dumont was talked into trading Luka Doncic away to the Los Angeles Lakers. Adding Cuban back into the decision-making process could help get Doncic back in 2028. That doesn't help add a casino to the state, though.

Patrick Dumont is About to be Busy

Patrick Dumont has often operated the team from a distance. He rarely comes to Dallas to games, only taking a hands-on approach when Nico Harrison tried pushing Anthony Davis to return from injury too soon. He realized how badly he messed up by trading Doncic away, but there's no getting over that.

Starting March 1st, he's about to be a busy man. He'll be promoted to CEO of the Las Vegas Sands Corp. soon, and that could force him to relinquish some responsibilities with the Mavericks in the meantime. They could still purchase the team in Las Vegas, and he could promote someone else to be the governor in that situation, but he's going to have a lot on his plate shortly.

Restless Mavericks Fanbase

One thing we know about Mavericks fans, they are going to voice their frustrations. They ride or die with the Mavs, as we saw with how much they protested the Luka Doncic trade and how often they chanted "Fire Nico," especially in the days before he was fired.

Maverick fans haven't been pleased with the ownership change, mostly because of who Miriam Adelson is. With these rumors coming out, and with how bad the team is, it wouldn't be surprising to start hearing "Sell the Team" chants at home games, even if only 11 home games are remaining in the season, and it's a few weeks before the Mavs are at home again. But if Mavericks fans continue to voice their frustration, we could see a change.

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