A major Las Vegas casino group may be getting into the basketball business. News broke on Tuesday that Mark Cuban is selling a majority ownership stake in the Dallas Mavericks to the Las Vegas Sands Corporation.
The deal would still leave the Cubans running basketball operations for a team NBA franchise, with the addition of a long-sought partner to partner with on the new Dallas Casino Resort and Arena project. That is, if Texas legalizes gambling, of course.
The deal is headed by Sands founder, the late W CEO Sheldon Adelson’s wife, Miriam Adelson, is believed to be The team is valued at more than $3 billion.
“Adelson, who is listed by Forbes magazine as the fifth-richest woman in the world with an estimated net worth of more than $33 billion, revealed in a company announcement and Securities and Exchange Commission filing that she is selling $2 billion worth of company stock in Sands” – approximately 10 % of its stake in the company – to finance “the purchase of a majority interest in a professional sports franchise pursuant to a binding purchase agreement, subject to customary league approvals.” NBA Reported by writer Mark Stein.
Are casino games the goal?
The potential change in ownership leaves Cuban in partnership with a company that could make his dream in the casino arena a reality. The businessman spoke about his interest in the project in early November, saying he was working with Sands to make it happen.
“When you think of all the places you want to save for a vacation, Texas is not one of them,” Cuban told The New York Times. Dallas Morning News. “There’s no real destination that you can save up for. That’s a problem and I think resort games will have a big impact.
“My goal, and the partnership with Las Vegas Sands, is that when we build the new arena, it will be in the middle of a resort and casino,” Cuban added. “This is the mission.”
An uphill battle ahead
Sands used to manage the Venetian Hotel and Palazzo in Las Vegas before selling the land to Vici Properties and operations to Apollo Global Management in early 2022, choosing instead to focus on projects in Macau and Singapore. But adding a Texas casino to that portfolio won’t be easy, despite Cuban’s wishes and the late Sheldon Adelson’s lobbying efforts in the state.
The proposals submitted to the Legislative Council this year did not yield any results. Since the Texas Legislature only meets every two years, further efforts would have to wait until 2025. Any bill passed would also need voter approval to amend the state constitution.
Although casino gaming has not yet taken hold, the poker scene in Texas continues to grow with clubs popping up all over the state. Rooms have avoided most legal issues by operating essentially as social clubs, with players paying hourly fees or monthly dues rather than traditional scalping.
Lodge Card Club, located in the Austin area and owned by poker pros Doug Polk, Andrew Nehm and Brad Owen, set a state record in August with a tournament that brought in 5,750 entries. Mexican Mauro Avila won the title for $250,000.
