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Adam Silver calls Mavericks' Mark Cuban the 'modern owner'

David Richard-USA TODAY Sports / Reuters

Commissioner Adam Silver is a big fan of the NBA's loudest critic.

Responding to a question of who stands out as the NBA's modern owner, Silver readily tabbed Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.

"You know, I think in a lot of people’s eyes, Mark Cuban has become the modern owner," Silver said told Bloomberg TV (as relayed by the Dallas Morning News.) "And I give him a lot of credit, because when he came into the business, he made it really cool to be upfront and visible."

Cuban is famous for his hands-on style of management. He rarely shies from controversy, and his criticism of the NBA has earned him nearly $2 million in fines since taking over ownership of the Mavericks in 2011.

But Cuban's visibility and passion is exactly what makes him stand out in Silver's eyes.

I think before Mark came in, owners kind of sat in the back of the suite. It sort of wasn’t cool to cheer and jump up and down. 

And I think once Mark demonstrated that it was OK to be a super fan, and that the season-ticket holders, the fans wanted to see that he was losing as much sleep over losses on the court as they were, I think other owners sort of who really wanted to be like that but for whatever reason didn’t think that was how you were supposed to act as owner saw, all right, well, Mark’s doing. It’s successful.  

That’s what I want to be like.

...

I think Mark Cuban is doing it the right way, because he’s so energized and he’s passionate about his team.

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