Even more than a week after the Dallas Mavericks stunned the NBA world and traded Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers, many fans are still stunned that the team would trade the 25-year-old star. Even Klay Thompson — the team’s starting shooting guard — understood why fans were so upset.
As you would expect, many people were emotional during the team’s first game following the trade, a 129-128 overtime loss to the Sacramento Kings. Four fans were ejected for what was considered unruly behavior, while many believe the team overreacted.
One person who has a unique perspective on the matter is Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban, who was there courtside during the game.
Mark Cuban Shares His Thoughts on Fans Ejected
Fans’ frustrations with the Mavericks organization and especially general manager Nico Harrison could be felt even before the game on Feb. 10 when nearly 1,000 fans gathered outside to let their displeasure be known. That continued into the game with plenty of boos and jeers.
Four fans were ejected for their behavior during the game. The first two were tossed after holding signs that together read “Fire Nico,” while one of them also mouthed the same thing during an in-game karaoke contest while on camera.
Later in the game, a fan chanted “Fire Nico!” while his friend wore a T-shirt that showed Mavericks majority owner Miriam Adelson with a clown nose. Both were ejected and walked out of the American Airlines Center by security.
Many people thought that the team was overreacting by ejecting these fans, believing they had the right to speak up and voice their displeasure. One person who agreed with the decision was Cuban, who shared his perspective on the controversial ejections to DallasHoopsJournal.com.
“Even if you aren’t violating the code of conduct, if you are doing something that could create a disturbance, they can remove you,” remarked Cuban. “No matter what you say.”
“If they think it could create a disturbance or lead to other fans not being able to watch the game, you can be removed.”
Cuban, who was at the game, even interacted with one of the fans late in the game.
Someone found the Cuban video!!
He’s dropping F Bombs on us! https://t.co/NW4SVYNdTj pic.twitter.com/eHJBgjPUYF— LUKA! LUKA! LUKA! (@MVPLuka77) February 11, 2025
“There is a lot of hell you can cause without violating the specific code as written,” Cuban told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “The discretion is always to make sure the fans are safe. And they get to enjoy the game.”
“So let’s say you had an innocent fire (someone) shirt, if security think they could lead to someone reacting violently or belligerently, they can take action. We have asked people to turn a jersey of the other team inside out or give them a replacement shirt or whatever because we thought they could be in a difficult position because of it.
“We don’t allow political signs either there have always been limits. Does anyone really think we should just ignore the possibility that something could happen or fans might not be able to enjoy the game simply because it isn’t a literal violation of the code?”
While Cuban agrees with the fans being removed, he is also one of the many people frustrated by the team’s decision to trade Dončić.
You can bet that the resentment from Mavericks fans will not be going away any time soon. It may only get worse as the team continues to slip in the Western Conference standings as it deal with injuries to Dereck Lively II, Daniel Gafford, and Anthony Davis, who was the key player the Mavericks acquired in the trade.
