Protest: Cuban changes his mind

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban would be proud of his players should they kneel down at the US anthem in the future. That’s not what it sounded like a few years ago.

Mark Cuban supports the protest movement against racism and police violence in the USA.

The owner of the Dallas Mavericks would like his players to kneel down when the national anthem is played as a sign of protest.

“If they want to kneel and do it with respect, I would be proud of them,” Cuban said on ESPN six weeks before the NBA’s planned reboot. He himself would possibly also kneel, Self-Made billionaire stressed.

NBA prescribes standing to the anthem
At present, the NBA regulations still stipulate that the athletes should stand at the anthem. Cuban, however, hopes that the league will rise above its shadow and “allow the players to do what they want to do”.

He would leave it up to his players whether they raise their arms or kneel down. “I don’t think it would be a sign of disrespect to the flag, the national anthem or our country,” Cuban said.

Cuban: “We have learned a lot”
The 61-year-old thus revised his opinion from three years ago when he spoke out against kneeling as a sign of protest. “I stand and put my hand on my heart. I expect the same from my players,” he said then.

Since then, however, the Americans have learned a lot, he says today. “I think we have developed as a country,” he explains his change of opinion. “In these special times, we can grow as a society and become aware of the challenges that minorities face in our society.”