Cuban working on $3.5B sale to casino
Mavericks owner would retain control of basketball operations after the sale
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is working on a deal to sell a majority stake in the NBA franchise to the family that runs the Las Vegas Sands casino, a person with knowledge of the talks said Tuesday night.
The agreement would be in the valuation range of $3.5 billion and take weeks for the league to process, according to the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because details weren’t being made public.
Cuban, a Mt. Lebanon native, would retain control of basketball operations in the deal.
The family of Miriam Adelson, widow of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, announced earlier Tuesday it was selling $2 billion of her shares to buy an unspecified professional sports team.
Cuban said almost a year ago he was interested in partnering with the Sands.
He has been a proponent of legalizing gambling in Texas, an issue that didn’t make it out of the state Legislature in a biennial session that ended earlier this year.
The 65- year- old Cuban, who just announced he was leaving the popular business TV program “Shark Tank” after a 16th season next year, rose to fame quickly after buying the Mavericks in 2000.
Tuesday’s games
Bucks 131, Heat 124: Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 33 points, Damian Lillard added 32 and visiting Milwaukee rallied in the fourth quarter to beat Miami and clinch a home quarterfinal game in the NBA In-Season Tournament. Cavaliers 128, Hawks 105:
Donovan Mitchell scored 40 points, Evan Mobley added 17 points and a career-high 19 rebounds, and Cleveland completed pool play in the NBA In-Season Tournament with a victory against visiting Atlanta to win six of its last eight games. Knicks 115, Hornets 91:
Julius Randle had 25 points and 20 rebounds, RJ Barrett scored 16 points, and host New York assured itselfs of a place in the quarterfinals of the NBA In-Season Tournament with a victory against Charlotte in a rout.
Celtics 124, Bulls 97: Jaylen Brown scored 30 points, Jayson Tatum had 21 and Boston routed visiting Chicago in the final round of group play in the NBA In-Season Tournament. The Celtics made a season-high 21 3pointers, getting four each from Al Horford and Jrue Holiday. All five Boston starters scored in double figures.
Nets 115, Raptors 103: Spencer Dinwiddie scored 23 points to lead host Brooklyn to a win against Toronto to win its third in a row, but was knocked out of the NBA In-Season Tournament. Bridges was one of five players to finish in double-figure scoring for Brooklyn.
Timberwolves 106, Thunder 103: Rudy Gobert had 17 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks, reserve Troy Brown Jr. scored 17 points and Minnesota withstood an injury to Anthony Edwards to beat visiting Oklahoma City in the NBA InSeason Tournament.
Mavericks 121, Rockets 115: Luka Doncic had 41 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, and Dallas prevented visiting Houston from advancing to the quarterfinals of the NBA In-Season Tournament with a victory. Kyrie Irving added 22 of his 27 points in the second half for the Mavericks, who had already been eliminated.