Last month following the absurd goaltending call that led to the Mavs losing to the Hawks (see the above videos), Cuban went on a Twitter storm in which he blasted the NBA and their referees:
A few days after the game, Cuban filed a formal protest with the League, asking that the last 9.7 seconds of the game to be replayed.
Well, the league announced today that not only are they denying Cuban’s protest, but they are also fining him $500K.
In its statement, the league criticized Cuban for “demeaning” the referees and “public criticism and detrimental conduct regarding NBA officiating.”
“It is a recognized part of sports for fans and the media at times to criticize officiating, but team executives must be held to a higher standard. A team owner’s effort to influence refereeing decisions during and after a game creates the perception of an unfair competitive advantage and thereby undermines the integrity of the game. Demeaning league employees also creates an intimidating workplace environment. With an increased focus on respectful conduct by coaches, players and fans during games, the actions of team executives should set an example and not lower expectations for appropriate behavior in our arenas.
Now, the NBA did not specifically say how that came up with the $500K number but if I put on my math cap — there were 7 mean tweets, you divide $500K by 7 and that equals $71.5K per mean tweet. Interesting.
This also brings Cuban fine total over the last two years to $1,100,000! If you recall, two years ago Cuban was fined $600K for saying it was in the best interest of the Mavericks to tank. $500K + $600k = 1.1 Milly. That’s enough math for a Friday.
Bottom line, expect to see Cuban cutting a lot more deals on this weeks Shark Tank episode!
Add Comment