Vote on Adelson purchase of Mavericks to be completed in days, source says

The NBA Board of Governors vote to transfer majority ownership of the Dallas Mavericks from Mark Cuban to the Adelson and Dumont families is being conducted by email with vote results expected within a few days, a source familiar with the process said Friday.

Miriam Adelson, the majority shareholder of Las Vegas Sands Corp., is acquiring an estimated 70 percent stake in the NBA team from billionaire entrepreneur Cuban, who since early 2000 has been the majority owner of the Mavericks. Cuban had purchased the team from businessman and politician H. Ross Perot for $285 million.

Adelson confirmed in November that she was selling $2 billion in Sands stock to finance the acquisition.

The Adelson family and not Sands is investing in the basketball team.

The family has indicated that if the team sale is approved, Adelson’s son-in-law, Sands President and Chief Operating Officer Patrick Dumont, would join the Board of Governors as the Mavericks’ representative. Cuban would continue as a minority owner of the team with an approximate 27 percent stake and remain in charge of basketball operations.

The sale of the team is in the last stages of completion.

According to the source familiar with the process, a subcommittee of the NBA Board of Governors interviewed Adelson and Dumont and gathered information about business, financial and personal background.

The subcommittee on Wednesday issued its background check report to the rest of the board and recommended approval of the transaction.

While team ownership votes can occur at regularly scheduled meetings of the Board of Governors, it was decided to conduct the vote by email because of the holidays.

The source said the governors would have “a handful of days” to submit their votes. At least 75 percent of the 30 NBA team owners’ votes — 23 — are needed to approve the transfer.

Once completed, it is expected the board or the league would confirm the outcome.

The Adelson family has indicated that it has no plans of moving the team from Dallas.

Las Vegas Sands in July acquired 108 acres in Irving, Texas, near stadiums where the Texas Rangers and Dallas Cowboys play in Arlington.

A Sands spokesman confirmed that a Sands subsidiary, Village Walk RE 2 LLC, bought the land near the former site of Texas Stadium where the Cowboys played before moving into AT&T Stadium in 2009.

Company officials would not say what the land would be used for, but it’s widely speculated it would become the site for an integrated resort with a casino with an arena for the Mavericks.

“The company has long shown its interest in Texas, and Dallas-Fort Worth specifically, and may make additional real estate investments in the future,” the spokesman said.

There’s plenty of time for the Mavericks to find a new home. The team is committed to playing through 2030 in American Airlines Center, which in April underwent an $18.5 million upgrade in seats and video boards in the arena shared by the Mavericks and the NHL Dallas Stars.

Sands has lobbied Texas lawmakers for years to win approval of casino gambling in the Lone Star State. The Texas Legislature next meets in 2025.

Sands did not disclose terms of the land sale agreement, but Dallas County tax records list the property’s value at $22.4 million.

The Review-Journal is owned by the Adelson family, including Dr. Miriam Adelson, majority shareholder of Las Vegas Sands Corp., and Las Vegas Sands President and COO Patrick Dumont.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on X.