Former Dallas Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban has publicly argued that the NBA should accept tanking as a legitimate team-building strategy, stating that the league’s focus should instead be on game affordability and fan experience.
Cuban posted his position on social media, saying, “Tanking isn’t the issue. Affordability and quality of game presentation are,” Cuban stated. His comments followed recent NBA fines against the Utah Jazz and Indiana Pacers for game management decisions the league deemed inconsistent with competitive standards.
Cuban, now a minority owner of the Mavericks, framed tanking as a matter of long-term roster building rather than competitive misconduct. “Fans know their team can’t win every game. They know only one team can win a ring. What fan that care about their team’s record want is hope,” Cuban said. He argued that strategic losing to improve draft positioning can accelerate a team’s path to contention.
Cuban’s history with tanking in Dallas
Cuban referenced his own tenure with the Mavericks as evidence that tanking can produce results with fan support. “We didn’t tank often. Only a few times over 23 years, but when we did, our fans appreciated it,” he said. Cuban pointed to the acquisition of Luka Doncic as an outcome of that approach.
Cuban also advocated for transparency between teams and their fan bases when a franchise pursues a deliberate rebuild, arguing that open communication about the strategy reduces negative perception.
NBA’s enforcement actions under Silver
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has taken the opposite position, increasing penalties for teams the league determines are intentionally losing. The fines against the Jazz and Pacers are part of a broader enforcement effort, and Silver has indicated he is considering stripping draft picks from teams found to be manipulating outcomes.
Silver has acknowledged the difficulty of distinguishing between teams that are genuinely rebuilding with limited rosters and those deliberately underperforming to improve their draft lottery odds.
Cuban’s affordability argument
Cuban’s comments centered on the cost of attending NBA games as a larger issue than tanking. The average cost for a family of four to attend an NBA game during the 2025-26 season is $277.65. Cuban argued that pricing is a greater barrier to fan engagement than the competitive quality of individual regular-season games.
“The NBA should worry more about fan experience than tanking,” Cuban said, contending that families priced out of attending games are less concerned with win-loss records than with access to the sport.
League response and ongoing debate
Cuban’s comments represent a direct challenge to the NBA’s current enforcement stance on tanking. The league has not publicly responded to his remarks. The debate comes at a point in the season when several teams with losing records are approaching the trade deadline and draft lottery positioning, making the competitive integrity discussion a recurring topic for the league office.
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