Haven’t you heard of any national anthem protests at Mavericks games yet? There’s a good reason for that: Dallas will no longer play “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
Mark Cuban told The Athletic it was his decision to eliminate the tradition of playing the national anthem before matches. The move went unnoticed by the first 13 joint preseason and regular season games at American Airlines Center because the Mavericks did not disclose it, either within the organization or through an announcement to the media. Monday was the first game in which the Mavericks allowed a limited number of fans into their arena.
Cuban has spoken out about his support for those who want to kneel while playing the national anthem, the practice that former 49ers full-back Colin Kaepernick started in 2016, and which has become a lightning bolt for partisan political debate.
The outspoken Mavericks owner told ESPN in July last year the possibility that players from his team could kneel during the national anthem: ‘If they take a knee and respect them, I’ll be proud of it’ and that he hopes he ‘ join them. He later tweeted in response to what he called ‘The National Anthem Police’ that if critics of the non-violent protest against systemic racism in the United States made a case, they could ‘complain to your boss and ask why they do not sing the national anthem every day before you start working. ”
Although NBA rules require players to perform while playing the national anthem, Commissioner Adam Silver chose to overlook the rule in order to support his players’ decisions to express themselves.
“I realize that this is currently a very emotional issue on both sides of the equation in America,” Silver said at a news conference in December, “and I think it calls for true engagement rather than enforcing rules. “