“I Let Him Be Dirk Nowitzki”: Mark Cuban Gets Candid on Turning Dallas Mavericks into a Winning Team

Mark Cuban with the Dallas Mavericks is the perfect example of how good leadership can change the fate of an organization. The team was founded in 1980, and in their first 20 seasons, they could only crack the playoffs six times. Once Cuban took over the team in 2000, everything changed for the good. However, the billionaire doesn’t like to take credit for the team’s success as he believes Dirk Nowitzki helped take the team to new heights.

During a recent appearance on the ‘Lex Fridman Podcast’, Cuban talked about buying the team 24 years ago and the success he has experienced in all these years. He bought the majority stake in the team for $285 million from previous owner Ross Perot Jr. Cuban would eventually sell his majority stake in 2023 at a $3.8 billion franchise valuation,  that time, he managed to make the Mavs one of the best teams in the league.

When asked how he managed to turn things around after the takeover, Cuban mentioned Dirk as the man who made it all possible.

He said, “I had this big, tall guy named Dirk Nowitzki, and I let him be Dirk Nowitzki, right. And I got out of the way, but I think more than anything else, there was the turnaround on the business side, and then there was the turnaround on the basketball side.”

Cuban said that he was willing to do whatever it takes to get to the winning side. For that reason, he ensured that his players were taken care of, on and off the court. He also unveiled that he hired 15 development coaches so that each player gets the right amount of attention. Even though many people had doubts, Cuban was sure that this would help his team and he proved everyone wrong.

The Dallas Mavericks, post Mark Cuban

Before he took over the franchise, the Mavs were one of the worst-performing teams in the league. The franchise became a winning team because of Cuban’s vision and determination to turn things around. After his ownership tenure began, the Mavs made it into 18 playoffs in 23 years compared to six in 20. The Mavs also made four Conference Finals appearances under his leadership in 2003, 2006, 2011, and 2022.

The Mavericks went to two NBA Finals with Cuban as the owner in 2006 and 2011 and even though they lost the 2006 series, the Mavs finally bagged their first NBA title in 2011 with Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry leading the pack from the front.

While Cuban likes to credit Nowitzki, the NBA veteran believes the ex-owner deserves all the praise. During an appearance on the ‘All the Smoke‘ podcast, he said, “He [Mark Cuban] changed everything.” Regardless of who takes the credit for it, the fact is that the Mavs really thrived under Cuban and Nowitzki.