The past six months have been a wild ride, not only for Mavs fans but also for its new owners.
Patrick Dumont is part of one of the two families that now co-own the Dallas Mavericks. The Adelson and Dumont families bought the majority share of the NBA franchise from former owner Mark Cuban for $3.6 billion, per Dallas Basketball FN. This year marked the third NBA Finals appearance for the Mavs since the franchise was created in 1980, making it an exciting year for fans and the owners, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
“It’s just better than anything I imagined it would be,” Dumont recently shared with reporters, per the Dallas Business Journal. Dumont serves as the governor of the Mavericks and is also the son-in-law of part-owner Miriam Adelson, who is the widow of Sheldon Adelson — a casino magnate.
Although the Mavericks fell short in the NBA Finals, Dumont still has big plans for the franchise’s future, including a revamp of the American Airlines Center and even an attempt to legalize gambling in Texas.
In an interview with DBJ, Dumont explained more about why the families invested in the Mavericks.
“We are here for a couple of reasons,” he began. “One, our family loves basketball…but we also fundamentally believe in the future of the city of Dallas.”
When asked about his first six months into ownership, Dumont said, “There are many businesses that are challenging, and this one’s very challenging and very competitive, but it’s also incredibly fun.”
He went on to say “there’s 18,000 friends when you’re in an arena, so it’s a pretty cool experience.”
The Adelson family owns Las Vegas Sands Corporation, a casino and resort company, and has made several moves over the last few months to purchase land in the Dallas area.
Dumont elaborated on Dallas’s potential and opportunity as it continues to grow and thrive as a location for businesses. He made it clear in his interview with DBJ that the purchase of the Mavericks had nothing to do with Las Vegas Sands or the push to make gambling legal in Texas.
Dumont explained at a press conference, “There’s a lot of tax recapture opportunity that could benefit the state of Texas by allowing casino gaming in the state in a way that makes sense and drives large-scale investment.”
Concerning future opportunities, Dumont added in his DBJ interview, “[I]f there ever is a time where those two things [Dallas Mavericks and Las Vegas Sands] converge, and there’s common interests there and it makes sense, then we’ll pursue it.”
As previously reported by DX, the Adelsons have bought property in Downtown Dallas near the American Airlines Center. There has also been talk of Las Vegas Sands purchasing property in Irving. However, when speaking to DBJ, Dumont pointed out that the company would continue to look for land in the area and develop it from the ground up.
The families are considering bringing some improvements to the American Airlines Center to enhance the fan experience and compete with other arenas across the country.
“You’ll see [the improvements] from top to bottom, but it’s going to take a little bit of time because it’s a living, breathing arena,” Dumont shared with DBJ. “It’s busy all throughout the year, so we’re gonna have to be mindful in the way that we do it and realize that we are kind of doing an operation while we’re running a sprint.”