The Dallas Mavericks may have lost whatever chance they had at signing Kevin Durant this summer due to an ill-advised comment from owner Mark Cuban.
Before his team lost in game five to be eliminated from the playoffs, Cuban had a controversial statement to make, saying Durant was the only “superstar” on the Thunder. As one could imagine, Russell Westbrook was not pleased and he went off on the Mavs during the game, leading his team to the pivotal win.
After the game, Westbrook was asked about Cuban’s strange comments, but before he could answer, his teammate and friend jumped in with the answer of a lifetime. Both players also blasted Mavericks’ forward Charlie Villanueva who initiated perhaps the strangest player beef of all time when he interrupted a pre-game dance between Westbrook and Thunder rookie Cameron Payne, with KD calmly ending the conversation by suggesting that Villanueva will not even be in the league next year.
“He’s an idiot” is not the endorsement Cuban would want from the guy he should be courting in free agency. The Mavs’ owner has become well-known for his controversial statements, but this one seemed to have extra negative effects.
In addition to angering both Durant and Westbrook, Cuban managed to annoy his own team, as well, with both head coach Rick Carlisle and star forward Dirk Nowitzki endorsing Westbrook’s superstardom.
Rick Carlisle: "I thought Westbrook played beautiful basketball this year."
— Royce Young (@royceyoung) April 26, 2016
Dirk on Cuban's superstar comment about Westbrook: "I'd take him."
— Royce Young (@royceyoung) April 26, 2016
In the end, this is a non-issue. The beef between the players is nothing and it will blow over. But there is a real chance that Cuban does not even get a single meeting with Durant this summer, adding to the litany of misses in free agency that have followed him for years.
