Skip navigation

Gay NBA player could be rich, Cuban says

'You would be an absolute hero . . . and that'll put money in your pocket'

Cuban
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said an NBA player that announced he was gay during his career could get rich, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.
Eliot J. Schechter / Getty Images
Slideshow
Golden State Warriors v Dallas Mavericks, Game 1
  Dancers from around the league
Check out some of the dancers from the NBA.

more photos

Video: NBA from NBC Sports
Abdul-Jabbar managing his illness
Nov. 15: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar wants to be very clear that his cancer was caught early and that he's not dealing with a death sentence.

  Ask the NBA expert: Ira Winderman

Do you have a burning question about your favorite team or player? Submit it now, and then check back for our reader mailbag on the 1st and 15th of each month.

msnbc.com news services
updated 12:42 p.m. ET Feb. 12, 2007

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said an NBA player that announced he was gay during his career could get rich, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.

"From a marketing perspective, if you're a player who happens to be gay and you want to be incredibly rich, then you should come out, because it would be the best thing that ever happened to you from a marketing and an endorsement perspective," Cuban told the newspaper. "You would be an absolute hero to more Americans than you can ever possibly be as an athlete, and that'll put money in your pocket.

"On the flip side, if you're the idiot who condemns somebody because they're gay, then you're going to be ostracized, you're going to be picketed and you're going to ruin whatever marketing endorsements you have."

Story continues below ↓
advertisement | your ad here

Cuban praised former NBA player John Amaechi, who states in his new book "Man in the Middle" that he is gay.

Slide show
Image: Ding Jianjun
  Week in Sports Pictures
Pain on the skating rink, flying high on the hardwood, upsets on the football field, and more.

more photos

"When you do something that the whole world thinks is difficult and you stand up and just be who you are and take on that difficulty factor, you're an American hero no matter what," Cuban told the Star-Telegram. "That's what the American spirit's all about, going against the grain and standing up for who you are, even if it's not a popular position."

© 2009 msnbc.com

Sponsored links