‘Why does Mark Cuban hate America?’ Reaction to Dallas Mavericks not playing anthem
Mark Cuban’s decision to stop playing the national anthem before Dallas Mavericks’ games has drawn strong reactions across social media.
The Mavericks haven’t played the anthem before any of their 13 preseason and regular-season games, but no one noticed until The Athletic pointed it out Tuesday night.
Now everyone, from country singer John Rich to Megyn Kelly to Ben Shapiro are reacting to the news.
“Wonder what he’d do if I bought a ticket then stood up in my seat and got the whole crowd singing it at the top of their lungs? Would he usher us all out? I’d like to see that,” Rich said in a message on Twitter.
One of the reasons Cuban likely decided to stop playing the anthem is the fact that for most of the 13 games at American Airlines Center, there have been few if any fans in the arena. Cuban said earlier in the day that the team had ongoing conversations on the potential use of the anthem as more fans are allowed to attend games. Indeed, the anthem was played before Wednesday night’s game against the Atlanta Hawks and a team spokesman said the team plans to play the anthem the rest of the season.
New Orleans Pelicans coach Stan Van Gundy applauded the move.
“This should happen everywhere. If you think the anthem needs to be played before sporting events, then play it before every movie, concert, church service and the start of every work day at every business,” Van Gundy said. “What good reason is there to play the anthem before a game?”
This story was originally published February 10, 2021 at 11:28 AM.
