Cuban: Mavs will use 'White House protocol' for reopening facilities

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban will approach reopening team facilities with an abundance of caution. Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Mark Cuban: Mavericks will use 'White House protocol' for reopening facilities

By Blake Harper | Last updated 5/12/20

As the NBA attempts to figure out when and how the season will resume, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban insists he will prioritize player safety. In an interview with The Athletic, Cuban said he would mirror the White House when it came to protecting his team.

"I’ll use the White House protocol. The way the White House protects the president and vice president is the way that I want to protect our players and employees, you know? We’ll just try to just copy what they do as a means of knowing when the time is right. As of now, for all we know, for all we’ve been informed, anyways, they’re testing everybody. And they test their top people on a daily basis. And so they have access to the best science, the best information, and so it just makes sense to me that we just copy them."

When asked if he believed that the NBA would have adequate testing for players, he said "absolutely." At this point, there is no indication that widespread testing would be readily available but Cuban credits America's "entrepreneurial spirit" to find solutions to whatever problems its way.

"I just trust American exceptionalism, entrepreneurialism spirit and capitalism. You know, we’ll figure out a way because we have to."

While Cuban has said that the team won't open up facilities without the NBA's approval, he said that every player on the Mavericks has access to at least a basketball hoop at this point.

The NBA has no official plan to resume the season but according to reports, the league has looked into all the teams playing in one location, such as Orlando, Las Vegas or Los Angeles. It is widely assumed that games will not be played in front of fans, as there would be too much risk for players and fans.

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