Cuban: 99 Percent Of Reaction Has Been Positive
Mark Cuban (Photo by Garrett W. Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
DALLAS (105.3 THE FAN) – While the loudest voices have been critical of Mark Cuban in light of comments made this week, the Mavericks owner says the majority of the feedback he’s received has been positive.
“It’s been 99 percent positive, except with some of the media,” said the Mavericks owner to Ben & Skin on 105.3 The Fan. “In a topic like this, you’re always going to have people who have to take sides. That’s probably where I’ve gotten the most grief. The good news is I haven’t really watched it; I just got it second hand. It doesn’t matter and I kind of expected it. I knew when I was saying it, it was going to cause a firestorm in some respect.”
Cuban says his controversial talk was geared towards his audience, a group of entrepreneurs and business people — something that’s lost on those who have picked his speech apart line-by-line.
“It’s something they’re going through, particularly since all the Donald Sterling stuff brought a lot of attention to them,” said Cuban. “Whenever I give a talk or get interviewed, I try to be appropriate to the audience. It was certainly appropriate to discuss my feelings and how I approached it.”
Cuban said he would give the same speech the “same way, everyday”, with one exception.
Many took offense to Cuban’s example of a “black kid in a hoodie”, saying it too closely resembled the Treyvon Martin case from 2012. Cuban says he’s reached out to the Martin family by email to apologize, and they responded.
“It’s kind of unfortunate that the hoodie part of it kind of misdirected everybody from the conversation. For the people that were really interested in the subject or cared about the importance of the subject — and for those who actually run their own business or are starting their own business — it was informative and hopefully helpful.”
And while he’s seen an increase in emails and messages since the controversy struck, the owner hasn’t heard a word from the NBA. Cuban says he spoke to a representative of the league, and they “haven’t gotten a single phone call about it.”
While some say it’s poor timing and insensitive to broach the subject of race and prejudice in light of the Donald Sterling controversy, Cuban disagrees.
“There is no non-sensitive time when it comes to race. The best time in my opinion to talk about it is when it’s the center of attention — when it’s a mainstream topic that a lot of people are discussing.”
As polarizing as the comments became, Cuban is glad that it sparked heartfelt discussion and forced people to think about their views on prejudice and racism.
“I’m proud of it. I’m absolutely, positively, 100 percent proud of everything I said — except I picked some poor examples.”
MORE: Does Cuban Want The Spurs To Win NBA Title?
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