Mark Cuban will stand for anthem but will support Mavs players if they don’t

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has made his opinion known regarding the national anthem protest sweeping the NFL and is expected to become an issue in the NBA during the 2016-17 season.

Cuban recently indicated he intends to continue standing for the anthem but supports others who choose not to, including players on his team.

“If you can’t protect the 1st Amendment rights of the people who you disagree with, who’s going to be there to protect your rights when you’re in the minority and you want to stand up to the government? Who’s going to be there, right? And so, I’ll be standing there with my hand on my heart, and my family will stand their with their hands on their hearts,” Cuban said, via The Dallas Morning News. “But if the guys have something to say that they believe in, as long as they do it as a team and as long as they discuss it together… that’s what everybody that’s been in the military has given their life for.

“I mean, there’s always going to be people who disagree with you in this country and that I disagree with, and they have every right to speak. And the minute we’re not able to speak up simply because you’re an employee or simply because you play a game, then we have a problem. It’s a very slippery slope. People pay to watch us play, and they have every right to express their opinion just as much. I have no problem with that as well. But there’s things that are important, and one is our 1st Amendment rights. That trumps all. That supersedes all.”

Mavericks players have stated any sort of protest or statement will be determined and agreed upon as a team.

Cuban has been an outspoken presence ever since he stormed onto the NBA scene years ago and continues to speak his mind to this day. It’s hardly surprising the brash Mavs owner has a strong opinion on the anthem protest issue, albeit a far different one than another owner of a Dallas professional sports team.