Mark Cuban: NBA Players Should Be Paid to Play in the Olympics

Mavericks’ owner Mark Cuban to Fox’s Greg Couch:

“It’s the biggest mistake the NBA makes,’’ he said. “If you look up stupid in the dictionary, you see a picture of the USA Dream Team playing for free for corporate America so the U.S. Olympic Committee can make millions of dollars. If you come up with something that you own, that you give it to me for free so I can make billions of dollars, I want it.

It’s 2012. Tough not to agree with Cuban. And D Wade. We’ll hear this same discussion from NHL Players eventually, right? That is, assuming NHL players leave mid-season again to play in the Olympics. [Fox Sports]

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12 Responses to “Mark Cuban: NBA Players Should Be Paid to Play in the Olympics”

molemaninthemorning Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 6:39 PM

How baller were those 1992 Dream Team Mickey D’s cups?

HakeemtheDream Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 6:43 PM

Damn those things are legit

Senator Jersey Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 6:47 PM

So who should pay them? The USOC doesn’t make a lot of profit. The employees do, but they would be paid if pros didn’t participate anyway. Should the networks? They’d say tough luck because ratings and ads still wouldn’t make a difference. I could swear that NBC actually loses money on the Olympics itself (could be wrong). That leaves probably only one player, the manufacturers of the apparel. And that would be Nike. Who already pays I want to say at least half of the persepective roster large sums of money. If anyone has a beef with that, and I think they are idiots if they do, the players should just go to them and talk to them about a raise on top of their already huge endorsement salaries.

Charske Don't Surf Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 7:01 PM

I love Cubes but F this

CodenameDuchess Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 7:13 PM

So who should pay them? The USOC doesn’t make a lot of profit. The employees do, but they would be paid if pros didn’t participate anyway. Should the networks? They’d say tough luck because ratings and ads still wouldn’t make a difference. I could swear that NBC actually loses money on the Olympics itself (could be wrong). That leaves probably only one player, the manufacturers of the apparel. And that would be Nike. Who already pays I want to say at least half of the persepective roster large sums of money. If anyone has a beef with that, and I think they are idiots if they do, the players should just go to them and talk to them about a raise on top of their already huge endorsement salaries.

Well said. Plus do you really think Nike wants to cut a check to Derrick Rose or any other athlete that is not already in the Nike family?

I’m kinda over the dream team idea anyway and would actually like it to go back to the college kids. That goes for hockey too.

payaso Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 7:34 PM

Self > country, to too many people. Part of why this nation’s going to poo.

HakeemtheDream Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 9:15 PM

Self > country, to too many people. Part of why this nation’s going to poo.

You served?

Seven Different Kinds Of WhatHaveYa Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 9:19 PM

i think he watched “you got served’

i’m a cynical mess, so i don’t believe athletes today compete in the olympics for their country. the minor sport athletes do it for the competition, to be best in the world and for the experience, so selfish reasons. the major sports do it for endorsement possibiities

Benjamin Franklin Rodriguez has the highest WAR evah! Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 9:53 PM

Amateurism is a sham.

I’m kinda over the dream team idea anyway and would actually like it to go back to the college kids. That goes for hockey too.

Those days are over forever. Its sounds good to say, but the U.S. doesn’t have the stomach to watch its team get steamrolled every 4 years in Basketball, and if you send college boys to play that grown man game in the Olympics thats exactly what will happen.

chicago Says:
April 23rd, 2012 at 10:15 PM

That leaves probably only one player, the manufacturers of the apparel. And that would be Nike. Who already pays I want to say at least half of the persepective roster large sums of money. If anyone has a beef with that, and I think they are idiots if they do, the players should just go to them and talk to them about a raise on top of their already huge endorsement salaries.

All of this is spot on. If these guys don’t have agents that negotiate their contracts with bonuses for things such as the Olympics, that’s their fucking problem. If you weren’t an individual that was a clear member of the Olympic team but still got on, renegotiate with your endorsers for additional money that comes in with the unexpected increase in exposure. How are America’s other Olympic athletes paid? I believe their sponsors handle that almost exclusively, but maybe I’m wrong.

Jeeves Says:
April 24th, 2012 at 1:03 AM

For what it’s worth, and I realize I”m super late to the party on this, you’re misinterpreting what Cuban is saying. He doesn’t care one way or another whether the player’s get paid (he actually asserts that it should be U-22 team). Cuban only cares about seeing compensation for the teams loaning out the players.

” I can’t think of anything more ridiculous and stupid than giving away the best assets from a for-profit business to somebody else to make hundreds of millions, if not billions of dollars.”

That’s a more salient quote from Cuban. (emphasis mine)

sweett310 Says:
April 24th, 2012 at 8:02 AM