NBA put an end to the problem of playing the anthem, but the outcome of Mark Cuban’s social experiment remains to be seen

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated since its initial publication. Last update at 8:15 p.m. Wednesday.

To hear Mark Cuban explain it now, the national backlash he unleashed, which started with a low growl and quickly turned into an explosion of debate, positive and negative, was his plan from the start.

The decision of Mavericks owner Cuban not to play Star-Spangled Banner before home games in Dallas was, he says, a sort of social experiment.

How quickly would he be noticed? How would people react? The first response came later than expected, not until Dallas’ 12th home game. The backlash began on Tuesday night and as the uproar neared its crescendo on Wednesday, the NBA issued a blunt statement.

“With NBA teams now welcoming fans to their arenas, all teams will play the national anthem in accordance with long-standing league policy.

Just like that, the problem was solved. Cuban immediately said the Mavericks would comply and, of course, the Star Spangled Banner was played ahead of Wednesday night’s Dallas game against Atlanta at the American Airlines Center.

Cuban, however, says he hopes the discussions he intentionally sparked about racial equality and, yes, patriotism will constructively endure.

“We have no problem playing it,” he told the Dallas Morning News of the anthem. “But we want these very important conversations to continue.”

Cuban, in his 21st season as owner of the Mavericks, has never shied away from controversy. From past experience, including last July when he declared America’s “national anthem policing” out of control, this was a combustible matter.

How effective was Cuban’s last topic of conversation? At Wednesday afternoon’s White House press conference, Press Secretary Jen Psaki was asked what President Joe Biden thought of Cuban’s decision to stop playing the hymn.

“I didn’t speak with him about Mark Cuban’s decision on the Dallas Mavericks, or I should say the national anthem,” Psaki said. “But I know he’s incredibly proud to be an American and has great respect for the anthem and everything it stands for, especially for our men and women in uniform serving around the world.” .

“He would also say that, of course, that part of our pride in our country means recognizing the times when we as a country have failed to live up to our highest ideals, which people often talk about. and sometimes action at sporting events, and that means upholding the constitutional right of individuals to demonstrate peacefully.

Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick jumped into the fray, announcing he would introduce the “StarSpangled Banner Protection Act, Senate Bill 4” as one of his legislative priorities this session. He said the purpose of the bill would be to ensure that the national anthem is played at all events in Texas that receive public funding.

“It’s hard to believe this could happen in Texas, but Mark Cuban’s actions yesterday made it clear that we need to make it clear that in Texas we play the national anthem before all major events,” Patrick said in a statement.

“In this time when so much divides us, sport is something that brings us together – right, left, black, white and brown. This legislation already enjoys wide support. I’m sure that will pass, and the Star Spangled Banner will no longer be threatened in the Lone Star State.

Two of the North Texas Mavericks’ professional sporting brothers, the Dallas Stars and the Texas Rangers, issued statements that virtually condemned the Cuban anthem’s decision without calling it by name.

In capital letters, the Stars’ statement called the anthem a “centuries-old tradition,” stressed that the team will continue to play and added, “As the only National Hockey League team in Texas, we are proud. to represent our state and our country. “

The Rangers called the anthem, “An important tradition that we will continue to honor at Globe Life Field.”

It was as if these franchises were doing all they could to disassociate themselves from Cuban, or at least from his hymn decision.

But as Cuban pointed out, anyone who believes he’s anti-anthem couldn’t be more wrong – and misses the talking point he was trying to raise.

“We respect and have always respected people’s passion for the anthem and our country,” he said. “But we also hear loudly the voices of those who feel that the anthem does not represent them. We believe their voices should be respected and heard, because they were not.

“We hope that in the future people will have the same passion they have for this issue and apply the same energy to listening to those who feel different from them. Then we can move forward and have courageous conversations that move this country forward and find what unites us.

Older Mavericks fans might recall that the team never played the national anthem during the period 1980 to 1996 under franchise co-founders Don Carter, the primary owner; and Norm Sonju, the team president. Instead, God Bless America was played before home games.

The Mavericks began playing the anthem when majority owner Ross Perot Jr. and minority owner Frank Zaccanelli bought the franchise in 1996, and continued to do so after Cuban bought the franchise in 2000.

Meanwhile, NBA rules have changed, requiring that the anthem be played before games and that league players stand tall during its play.

These regulations were relaxed during the restart of the 2019-2020 NBA season last summer as part of the Disney World campus bubble. Following the death of George Floyd while in custody in Minneapolis and other deaths and injuries of people of color while in custody, NBA players used the bubble backdrop amid the coronavirus pandemic as a platform to discuss racial equality and police reform.

When the anthem was played ahead of four months of ranking and playoff matches in the bubble, most players and coaches knelt down and generally locked their arms with the opposing team in solidarity and protest. silent.

Cuban said on Wednesday he believed much of the efforts of players and coaches fell on deaf ears – or were heard and too soon forgotten.

“When you’re trying to create social change, it’s never going to be easy,” he said during an appearance on ESPN’s The Jump. “We’ve seen this all summer. We listened to the people. There were a lot of people who tried to stand up for what they believed in and were not really heard.

“These are tough conversations that aren’t going to go away whether or not we play the national anthem.”

Cuban said that as this season approaches, he and Mavericks CEO Cynthia Marshall and other franchise executives have discussed the possibility of not playing the anthem.

When the Mavericks played their only home preseason game on Dec. 17 against Minnesota, in front of no audience as the pandemic raged, players and coaches from both teams lined up on the pitch as teams traditionally do for play the hymn.

When no music started, the players looked around in bewilderment, shrugged, and returned to their respective benches.

Has a Dallas Morning News reporter at American Airlines Center to cover the game from the new distance mandated by the NBA near the top of the lower bowl, the scene appeared to be a problem. An oversight.

When the regular season home games began, still without fans, no one seemed to notice, or at least publicly point out, the absence of the anthem.

It wasn’t until Monday’s home game against Minnesota – the first with fans, but only about 1,500 frontline workers admitted for free – that a reporter from The Athletic noticed the lack of an anthem and said received confirmation from Cuban that it was his decision.

Contrary to this report, however, Cuban stated The news Tuesday night that he had not made a decision for the season. On Wednesday, he explained that executives of the Mavericks franchise meet regularly and discuss the likely possibility that the team will resume playing the anthem.

“Over the games, honestly, we kept talking about what we were going to do at some point,” he said on The Jump. “But honestly, it came to a head when it was reported that in one of our games we hadn’t played it.

Mavericks players and coaches of course knew the anthem was not being played. Cuban said The news that the Mavericks also informed the visiting teams in advance that there would be no anthem. He said the Mavericks haven’t received any negative feedback.

By Wednesday night’s game, of course, the whole country knew what the Mavericks had done and the reaction was pouring in from all parts of the country.

“It’s a heated discussion, which is certainly not surprising,” said Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle. “It was Mark’s decision. He was resolute about it. He had his reasons. . . It’s been a busy day.

The question of playing the anthem is over as far as the NBA is concerned, but the end result of Cuba’s social experiment will not be known for a while.

It depends on how the conversations are going.

“I think something like that, anytime you have a result of something like that, you have to embrace it,” Carlisle said. “It’s an opportunity for people to see things differently.

“And, you know, whether you agree or disagree, we all have to agree that as Americans we support the right to choose how we express ourselves, and that’s another fundamental thing that is very important with this.

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