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Mark Cuban, the former Dallas Mavericks majority owner who stills own a minority stake in the NBA franchise, has thrown his support for the next U.S. president behind Democrat Kamala Harris.
He sold the majority share of the Mavericks to the Adelson and Dumont families, and owner Miriam Adelson is one of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s largest individual donors, giving $100 million to political action committee Preserve America’s efforts to elect Trump, according to OpenSecrets.org.
The differing support of presidential candidates has been a fascinating subplot with Cuban more vocal publicly, telling USA TODAY opinion columnist Nicole Russell, “I know Harris would make a better president. That’s the only reason I’m supporting her,” adding, “I want a president that is honest, ethical, open minded, not an ideologue or dogmatic. Pragmatic, analytical and learns from her experiences and from others.”
Adelson is less vocal publicly but influential behind the scenes with her vast financial resources and ardent support of Israel.
As one of the wealthiest political donors of the current election cycle, according to OpenSecrets.org, she is also the biggest donor among sports ownership by a substantial margin. For comparison, she has donated three times more money to Trump’s election efforts than all NFL owners have given to all federal candidates since the start of 2023, according to USA TODAY Sports research.
Adelson has given $95 million to Preserve America PAC since July, per Federal Election Commission filings. Adelson and her late husband, Sheldon, gave a similar amount to a Trump-backed super PAC in 2020.
The NBA and National Basketball Players Association are active in civic engagement, including partnering with non-partisan groups’ efforts to increase voter turnout. Eight NBA teams planned to use their facilities as polling locations or a location to drop off ballots. On Tuesday, the entire San Antonio Spurs roster voted together. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr and Warriors star Stephen Curry are among the prominent NBA players and coaches who have pledged their support for Harris.
But it is difficult to match Adelson’s financial resources. Adelson and her family are among the wealthiest people in the world with an estimated net worth of $32 billion, according to Forbes.
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Who is Miriam Adelson?
Adelson, 79, is the widow of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, who died in 2021. Adelson and her family are the largest shareholders of Sands, which owns and operates casinos and hotels worldwide. Sands previously owned the Venetian Resort, which included The Venetian, Palazzo and Venetian Expo.
She attended school in Israel and became a physician, and later Adelson specialized in addiction treatment. She and her husband founded Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Clinic for Drug Abuse Treatment & Research more than three decades ago.
One of the wealthiest women in the world, Adelson was awarded by then-President Trump with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2018.
“Miriam Adelson is a committed doctor, philanthropist, and humanitarian,” it says on trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov. “She has practiced internal and emergency medicine, studied and specialized in the disease of narcotic addiction, and founded two research centers committed to fighting substance abuse. With her husband, Sheldon, she also established the Adelson Medical Research Foundation, which supports research to prevent, reduce, or eliminate disabling and life-threatening illness. As a committed member of the American Jewish community, she has supported Jewish schools, Holocaust memorial organizations, Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, and Birthright Israel, among other causes.”
When did Miriam Adelson and her family buy the Dallas Mavericks?
On Nov. 29, 2023, the Miriam Adelson and Patrick Dumont families reached a binding agreement to purchase a majority share of the Mavericks from Cuban at a valuation of nearly $4 billion. One month later, NBA owners approved the sale. At the time of the agreement, Adelson and her family sold nearly $2 billion worth of Sands shares to facilitate the purchase of the pro sports franchise.
There is no specific mention of Miriam Adelson in the Mavs’ media guide. Her son-in-law, Patrick Dumont, is listed as the governor. He is the president and chief operating officer of Sands and is also on the board of directors.
The Mavericks reached the NBA Finals last season, losing to Boston, and they are expected to contend again this season.
Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt