While some are prone to speculate that Cuban is a scapegoat because of his politics, the facts of the case -- as initially laid out by the government, and certain to be contested by Cuban and his lawyers -- read like a textbook example of insider trading. The government alleges that Cuban learned of an action that would lower the stock price of an Internet startup called Mamma.com in which he was a major investor, and he sold his stock to unwitting buyers before the news was made public, and at a higher price than it traded for after the move. Nevermind, that Cuban's transaction was more than four years ago, or that the money he saved by acting as he did, $750,000 or so, is a drop in the bucket compared to Cuban's net worth -- shades of the Martha Stewart case -- or to the market cap of the stock (at least at that time). It would have been remarkably easy for the feds to look the other way and to ignore what Cuban is accused of doing.