Mark Cuban Shares Thoughts on Current NBA Season and 'Shark Tank' Pitches (Exclusive)
The 2021-22 NBA season is underway, and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is hoping his team can win it all and while he is hopeful his team can make a run at the NBA Finals this season, he wants one aspect of the NBA to get better as the year rolls on. PopCulture.com recently caught up with Cuban via email, who revealed the one thing he wanted to see changed in the NBA.
"Officiating," Cuban replied to PopCulture. Cuban is very passionate about his NBA team, which means he will get into with officials. In an article from The Ringer in 2020, it was reported that Cuban has racked up more than $2 million in fines in 20 years for his criticism on officiating. The article was written shortly after Cuban was fined $500,000 for his comments after a call in a Mavericks game where they lost to the Atlanta Hawks.
But as Cuban would like to see the officiating improve, he knows what the Mavericks need to do to be a championship-contending team. "Just keep on getting better," Cuban said. The Mavericks now the NBA Finals in 2011 with the help of NBA legend Dirk Nowitzki. Since then, the Mavericks have either not reached the playoffs or lost in the first round of postseason play. Dallas is optimistic about the future due to the addition of Luke Doncic, who was named Rookie of the Year in 2019 and has been selected to the All-NBA First team the last two seasons.
When Cuban is not working on getting the Mavericks better, he appears on the ABC show Shark Tank. When asked about the top thing to consider when pitching to sharks, Cuban replied, "the quality of the entrepreneur." Cuban has been on Shark Tank as one of the Sharks since the third season. The show started in 2009, and the 13th season premiered in October.
Cuban has had a lot of success in the business world and shows no signs of slowing down. According to Forbes, Cuban's net worth is an estimated $4.5 billion and ranked No. 247 on the 2021 Forbes 400 list. He remains a busy man, but when asked about the goals he has moving forward, Cuban said, "Enjoy every minute I can of my kids growing up."