mark-cuban.jpg

The Dallas Mavericks' strong start to the season has taken a turn for the worse in the last week or so. For one, they've lost four games in a row to fall to 15-15, which has them sitting in 11th in the Western Conference. Now, they have a bit of a controversy on their hands. 

Earlier this week, Mavs owner Mark Cuban made some controversial comments about the state of youth basketball development in America. Cuban said that youth players, and the NBA, would be better off if children learned how to play in Slovenia -- the home of Mavericks star rookie Luka Doncic. He also added that Americans learn how to "taunt and put together mixtapes," a phrase that can easily be seen as coded language disparaging African-American players and culture. 

Cuban's full comment:

"If we took our best kids and seven years before they are McDonald's All-American, we sent them over to Slovenia to get an education, the league would be a thousand times better. They just learn how to play basketball while our guys learn how to taunt and put together mixtapes."

Now, a Mavericks player has responded. Harrison Barnes, who played in the McDonald's All-America game in 2010, and won an Olympic Gold Medal with Team USA in 2016, said that he doesn't agree with Cuban's statement, and doesn't find it funny. 

Barnes' full comment: 

"As a statement, I don't agree with it. As a joke I don't find it funny. And frankly I think it doesn't reflect what makes the NBA special.

The great thing about our league is that players come from all over the world. We are raised in every background imaginable and bring unique perspectives because of it. We should celebrate that. We bring those perspectives on each other, on issues in our communities and we aren't afraid to learn from and share those perspectives. That's our strength."

It's not surprising at all that Barnes -- or any other player -- would find fault with Cuban's comments. They're at worst disrespectful, and at best insensitive. And there's especially no reason for the owner of a team to say something like this when many of his own players grew up in the American youth system.