Mark Cuban: No Class

I guess I am old school. I believe that the owner of a sports team is better seen and not heard. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that they are not allowed to talk, just in the appropriate venues. Radio show? Sure. TV interview? Not a problem. But with new owners, comes new issues. Jerry Colangeo is my favorite. He was the essence of class. Well respected by the community and the profession. He gave interviews, voiced his opinion in a a well mannered forums, and never called anyone out or disrespected anyone. Ever. Today's owners are a different breed. They own the team, feel like the are royalty, and don't let you forget it. Seems like they go out of their way to find air time to hear themselves speak. Robert Sarver, owner of the Phoenix Suns, is a lot like this. He sits in the stands, not in the owners box, and cheers on his team. That would be OK if that was all he did. He also reacts to the refs and their calls and also has been known to heckle opposing players on the floor. It seems at times he does this to create attention to the fact that he is an owner, and likes to see and hear himself on TV. However, as bad as he seems, he is in the minor leagues compared to Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks. Cuban holds nothing back. He has been fined by the NBA over $1.6 million for his actions. Seems like a lot of money, but his net worth is over $2.3 billion. Yes, billion. So, whats a million dollars to him. Obviously, not much. That alone is insulting. Some of his antics:

In a nationally publicized incident, he criticized the league's manager of officials, Ed T. Rush, saying that he "wouldn't be able to manage a Dairy Queen."

During the 2005–06 NBA season, Cuban started a booing campaign when former Maverick player Michael Finley returned to play against the Mavs as a member of the San Antonio Spurs.

In a playoff series between the Mavericks and Spurs, Cuban cursed Spurs forward Bruce Bowen and was fined $200,000 by the NBA for rushing onto the court and criticizing NBA officials

After the 2006 NBA Finals, Cuban was fined $250,000 by the NBA for repeated misconduct following the Mavericks' loss to the Miami Heat.

In February 2007, Cuban publicly criticized NBA Finals MVP Dwyane Wade and declared that he would get fined if he made any comments about what he thought really happened in the 2006 NBA Finals.

On January 16, 2009, after a reviewing, the league fined Cuban $25,000 for yelling at Denver Nuggets player J. R. Smith at the end of the first half on a Mavericks-at-Nuggets game

I know what you are thinking: He might be an a$$, but I bet his players love him. Here is a quote by the leader of the Mavericks, Dirk Nowitzki:

"He's got to learn how to control himself as well as the players do. We can't lose our temper all the time on the court or off the court, and I think he's got to learn that, too. He's got to improve in that area and not yell at the officials the whole game. I don't think that helps us.... He sits right there by our bench. I think it's a bit much. But we all told him this before. It's nothing new. The game starts, and he's already yelling at them. So he needs to know how to control himself a little."

This doesn't sound like a player who is thrilled by the owner.

This last weekend, Cuban again made the headlines. Did he call out a player? No. Did he insult the refs? No. He went one step further, a step he should never have taken. A step that the NBA should ban him from attending any more games. What did he do? He called out a player, from the other team, to the players' Mom. On Mother's Day no less. The NBA is reviewing a post game confrontation between Cuban and the mother of Denver Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin during which the Dallas Mavericks' owner referred to Martin as a "thug" or a "punk," according to a report in The Denver Post. Cuban claims he saw Martin's mother, Lydia Moore, as a fan was yelling that the Nuggets were "thugs." "That includes your son," Cuban said to Moore. Martin's agent, Brian Dyke, had a different take on the incident. According to Dyke, an unprovoked Cuban told Moore, "Your son is a punk." Now, given Cubans' history and personality, which do you believe? It really doesn't matter, he is a disgrace to the fans, players, his team and the league. Worst case scenario? The NBA will fine him an amount that really doesn't matter to him. That's why they should ban him from the arena. a fine is pointless. Cuban has proven that time and time again. By the way, Cuban was upset because his team had just lost a game to the Denver Nuggets on a last second shot made by Carmello Anthony. Martin, the player whose mom was insulted, wasn't even involved in the final shot! Cuban came onto the floor near the front of the Mavericks' bench after Anthony hit the shot, before Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki took the inbounds pass and missed a long shot at the buzzer.
As he left the court after the game, Cuban slightly shoved a TV cameraman, pushing his forearm to move him aside as the owner walked by. Are you kidding? This is a grown up, an owner of the team acting like a 7 year old who can't stand to lose. We should not have to put up with this. The NBA should stop it from happening again. No amount of money is going to stop him. Ban him. For the playoffs. For all future games. Mark Cuban has no class.