A day after Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban reportedly told The Athletic that the team had decided not to play the national anthem at home games, the NBA released a statement saying the league’s long-standing league policy ‘will retain.
Cuban appeared on ESPN’s ‘The Jump’ and said the Mavericks have no problem playing the national anthem at all, and the reason they decided not to play it so far this season is because they felt like the tradition ‘did not fully represent them. ‘
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“We always talk to our community. This is something [Mavericks CEO Cynthia Marshall] stands for it and has been very insistent and has become a core part of who we are at the Dallas Mavericks, “Cuban told Rachel Nichols of ESPN on Wednesday. When they listened to the community, there were quite a few people who expressed their concern, really their fear that the national anthem did not fully represent them, that their voice was not heard.
“So we had a lot of conversations about whether or not we should play the national anthem. And during the first preseason game, we decided not to play it and just saw what the answer was, knowing that we would keep going. We then made no decision to never play the national anthem – that was not the case at all. We did not cancel the national anthem. Our flag still waved proudly on the wall the American Airlines center and everyone had the opportunity to address it and pray for it or say goodbye to it or whatever they feel. ‘
NBA REQUIRED TEAMS TO PLAY NATIONAL ANTEMES MATERIAL CUBAN REPORT FOR MAVS GAMES
“There was never a final decision that we would not play the national anthem,” Cuban added.
After the NBA announced its statement on the national anthem, Cubans said that the Mavericks would start playing again before the game Wednesday night against the Atlanta Hawks.
“We respect and always respect the passion that people have for the national anthem and our country,” Cuban said in the statement. “But we also hear the voices of those who feel that the national anthem does not represent them. We feel that their voices should be respected and heard because they have not been.
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“Our hope is that people will take the same passion forward as they do for this issue and use the same amount of energy to listen to those who feel differently. Then we can move forward and have courageous conversations that move this country forward and find what we unite. ‘