Six hours before what threatened to be the end of a season for the Dallas Mavericks, Patrick Dumont reflected on what has been a whirlwind six months.
Last November, news surfaced that Mark Cuban intended to sell his majority interest ownership share in the Mavs to the Adelson and Dumont families, who head Las Vegas Sands Corp. The move was approved in late December, and Dumont一son-in-law of casino magnate Miriam Adelson一was named the Mavericks’ governor. Five months later, Dumont was accepting the Western Conference finals trophy and looking ahead to the Mavs’ first NBA Finals appearance since 2011.
On Friday, June 14, ahead of the Mavs’ blowout win over the Celtics, Dumont made time to discuss the state of the franchise. His focus was on the bigger picture. “They’re a talented team, and they’re going to keep fighting, I believe that,” he said. “But if you’re a fan of basketball, there’s nothing better than what the Mavericks just did. I mean, they persevered [through this playoff run]. It has been like a drama. It has been like a soap opera of unbelievable basketball play.”
The move to invest in the Dallas team was in part due to a family love of the game, Dumont said, but there was more. “We also fundamentally believe in the future of the city of Dallas and in Texas,” he added. “We think it’s a great business community. We think it’s just a great, great place to be. I love the character of the community here. It’s very family-oriented. We love that, and we think it’s a great place to invest.”
That means partnering with the Dallas Stars and with the City of Dallas on the future of the American Airlines Center and fan experience, Dumont said—even amid swirling rumors and Cuban’s desire for the Mavs to build a new stadium. Although team leadership declined to share specific plans on the future of the home stadium, Mavs’ CEO Cynt Marshall noted that they are looking at upgrading the premium and food experiences. “If you look at some of the newer arenas being built today, there is something for fans all over the arena,” Dumont added, alluding to potential activations and opportunities for fans to connect with the team.
“We want to do that throughout the arena,” he said. “And so you’ll see it from top to bottom. But it’s going to take a little bit of time, because it’s a living, breathing arena, right? It’s busy all throughout the year, so we’re going to have to be mindful in the way that we do it, and realize that we’re kind of doing an operation while we’re running a sprint. But we’ll get it done.”
Dumont also serves as president and COO of Las Vegas Sands Corp., which has advocated for legalizing casino gambling in Texas. “I do want to point out that us buying the team had nothing to do with getting gambling in Texas,” Dumont said Friday. “Las Vegas Sands has been looking in Texas way before we ever knew we were going to buy the team.
“Now, if there ever comes a time where those two things converge and there’s common interest there, and it makes sense, then we’ll pursue it,” he added. “But for now, I’m very focused on the Dallas Mavericks doing the things that are right for the Mavericks and Las Vegas Sands is very focused on doing things that are right for Las Vegas Sands.”
Dumont said it starts with building a foundation of relationships within the Dallas area. That has involved meeting with individuals and smaller groups over lunch and dinner to get to know the ethos of the community. “The heartbeat of Dallas is the community,” Dumont said. “I’m not from here. We purchased an NBA team, and people couldn’t wait to talk to us and embrace us. They’re like, ‘Welcome to Dallas. You’re going to have a great time here, and we appreciate it.’ Where else does that happen? It won’t happen in New York City, right?”
But if you rewind the tape to before the Mavs made a run at hoisting the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy—which, by the way, still is not out of the realm of possibility ahead of a fateful game 5 tonight—Dumont was already looking to a different victory down the road. And for him, getting to that prize involves pouring all the resources he can into supporting Marshall, General Manager Nico Harrison, and Head Coach Jason Kidd.
“Those are my three areas of focus,” Dumont said on Friday afternoon. “And looking to the future, working with them, how to invest in the team, working with the Stars and the city to invest in the arena, and figuring out how to create a winner for the long term—that’s really what we’re focused on.”
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Audrey Henvey
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Dallas MavericksMark Cuban
