Last year’s NBA Finals suffered its lowest ratings ever, with the deciding Game 6 garnering just 5.6 million viewers despite the presence of NBA superstar LeBron James and the league’s marquee franchise, the Los Angeles Lakers. The controversial decision by the Mavericks comes alongside a concerning ratings plunge for the NBA.

The National Football League (NFL) has recently complemented ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ with “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” dubbed ‘The Black National Anthem” by the NAACP. “If you want to complain, complain to your boss and ask why they don’t play the national anthem every day before you start work.”Īt this stage, it’s also unclear if the National Anthem will be replaced by another song, or simply skipped entirely. The move drew considerable protest last year from basketball fans, though the outspoken Cuban fired back with an angry retort: “The National Anthem Police in this country are out of control,” Cuban tweeted. Cuban has been a longtime critic of the National Anthem, and has kneeled alongside players in previous games.

Separately, an NBA spokesperson has also confirmed the move by the Mavericks, noting that franchise teams are “permitted to run their pregame operations as they see fit.” Given the previous information on a possible pan-NBA removal of the National Anthem, it appears likely that other teams will follow suit.

Mark cuban national anthem