Why yes, Mark Cuban does hold (playful) grudges.
Speaking on KRLD-FM 105.3 The Fan, the Dallas Mavericks owner admitted that he wanted to best Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey in free agency this past summer, per The Dallas Morning News:
On if things are personal with the Rockets with Daryl Morey:
“Oh, all good business is personal. Trust me, there’s nobody more competitive than me. Every bit of me wanted to kick his ass and I would have felt bad. Obviously they got Dwight [Howard] a couple of years ago. Yeah, I wanted to beat him. And that’s a compliment to him. Daryl is very smart. It was very much like a game of chess.”
On the Rockets making inquiries on Dirk in the trade market:
“I was like, ‘Are you kidding me?’ He asked if we’d trade Dirk. At first I thought it was taunting, but now knowing more about Daryl I don’t think it was in hindsight. That’s just not his style. It says a lot about their approach more than anything else. They just have a different understanding and approach to chemistry than we do. Some teams, and that’s not just the Rockets, just put together talent and the talent takes care of itself. We think chemistry matters. When Carmelo came to visit us, there was no chance that we were going to put him in someone else’s jersey number and put it on the outside of the arena. That’s not our style.”
Can’t really say I blame Cuban. His comments were all in good fun, but however good natured his ribbing may have been, there has to be part of him that’s satisfied with stealing Chandler Parsons from the Rockets.
It was the Rockets who “stole” Dwight Howard in summer 2013, after all. If not for them, perhaps Howard would call Dallas home. He certainly wasn’t returning to the Los Angeles Lakers. Morey and the Rockets could be the reason Dallas doesn’t have a top-15 player jumping center every night.
More than Howard, there’s Dirk Nowitzki. That Morey had the balls to inquire about his availability definitely should have offended Cuban. It’s how Morey works, of course—leave no star-studded stone unturned—but all we heard over the last year or so is how Nowitzki wasn’t going anywhere. To pitch Cuban on a trade for him is the equivalent of saying the Mavericks didn’t deserve their dominant forward.
That’s pretty smug, is it not? General managers have to do their due diligence, but Nowitzki has always been as untouchable as they come.
Offering him a contract during free agency is one thing; trying to get the Mavericks to trade him, after they’ve repeatedly indicated he wasn’t going anywhere, is another.
This time around Cuban and the Mavericks appear to be doing the ass-kicking. The Rockets aren’t as impressive on paper after losing Parsons to Dallas. Their attempt to land Chris Bosh while retaining Parsons ultimately cost them. Worse, it was the Mavericks’ gain.
Parsons is in Dallas, Cuban is smiling and Morey’s ass—at least for the time being—has been kicked.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com.
