Mark Cuban Gets Fined $25,000; Blogs Apology to 'bff' J.R. Smith

Posted Jan 17, 2009 9:28AM By Randy Kim (RSS feed)

Mavs owner Mark Cuban was fined $25,000 by the NBA Friday for confronting Denver's J.R. Smith after Cuban saw Smith throw an elbow at Dallas' Antoine Wright's head.

Cubes getting fined by the league is nothing new, obviously. But what upped the juice on this story was Cuban's hilariously sarcastic response to Smith, which he posted on his blog.

Here's the post in its entirety, as run on BlogMaverick.com (smart money says Cuban would probably be cool with us scraping the whole post from his site):

Dear JR.

Im sorry I didnt accept your generous offer of a signed pair of shoes. I think they were even my size.

The NBA tells me a tech should have been called on you for throwing the elbow and that I should pay a 25k dollar fine because owners aren't supposed to get mad. Ever.

In the spirit of the joy of my getting fined and your not getting the tech, have the Nuggets PR folks contact the Mavs PR folks and I will donate 25k to the charity of your choice.

Unless of course your coach thinks that the wrong thing to do, or the NBA says I can't because it would be a violation of a rule. In which case, I will find a charity that I think you would like and make the donation in your name.

bff

m

Sometimes Cuban's shtick wears a little thin, but in my opinion, this was pretty brilliant. Score one for the NBA's own Howard Hughes in sweatpants.

(Also, for more on this whole flap, check out Jay Mariotti's e-mail exchange with Mark Cuban.)

Cubans Controversies

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban came under fire after Tuesday night's contest between Denver and Dallas because of an alleged scuffle with Nuggets guard J.R. Smith at halftime. "I thought it was very unprofessional and irresponsible," said Nuggets coach George Karl. Click through to see more notorious highlights from Cuban's past in the sports world.

Garrett W. Ellwood, NBAE / Getty Images

In November 2008, the outspoken billionaire was accused of insider trading concerning the sale of 600,000 shares of Mamma.com. The SEC's lawsuit sought an injunction against future violations, an unspecified civil penalty and restitution of the losses Cuban allegedly avoided.

David Zalubowski, AP

Cuban, who became a billionaire by selling his company, Broadcast.com, to Yahoo! in 1999, purchased the Dallas Mavericks in 2000 for $285 million from H. Ross Perot Jr. The Mavericks were a floundering NBA franchise, with a small following and struggles on the court.

Paul Buck, AFP / Getty Images

Cuban became a very hands-on and accessible owner, spending his time on the court rather than up in the owner's box and running his own blog.

Ronald Martinez, Getty Images

Cuban's rise to ownership is considered the ultimate fan fantasy successfully coming true. He is an unapologetic fan not afraid to celebrate or scream at officials or players.

Roy Dabner, AP

However, because of his gregarious nature, Cuban has had his share of spats with NBA commissioner David Stern. The league has fined the owner more than $1.6 million for various comments and actions.

Bill Janscha, AP

After saying "I wouldn't hire him to manage a Dairy Queen" about the NBA's head of officiating in 2002, the company challenged Cuban to work in one of its stores for a day. Cuban accepted, and served frozen treats at a Texas location.

LM Otero, AP

Even Cuban's ex-players aren't spared his wrath. After former Maverick Michael Finley returned to Dallas in the 2005-06 season, the owner encouraged fans to shower him with boos.

Douglas C. Pizac, AP

One of his own players thought Cuban should take a lesser role one the sideline. Saying it was a "bit much" for him to be next to the bench, Mavs star Dirk Nowitzki said "he's got to learn how to control himself as well as the players do."

J. Pat Carter, AP

Cuban's biggest fine came after the 2006 NBA Finals. He was fined $250,000 for various transgressions during Game 5 as the Mavericks fell behind in a series they led 2-0 and eventually lost to Miami.

Stephen Dunn, Getty Images