The NBA and Mark Cuban both backtracked Wednesday, with the league telling clubs, including Cuban’s Dallas Mavericks, they must include the national anthem as part of pregame activities after the Dallas owner’s decision to do away with performances of the song at home games this season threatened to turn into a political disaster.
Cuban issued a statement Wednesday saying the Mavericks would play the anthem starting Wednesday night against Atlanta, reversing course after not playing “The Star-Spangled Banner” for Dallas’ first 13 home preseason and regular-season games this campaign.
“We respect and always have respected the passion people have for the anthem and our country,” Cuban said. “But we also loudly hear the voices of those who feel that the anthem does not represent them. We feel that their voices need to be respected and heard, because they have not been.
“The hope is that those who feel passionate about the anthem being played will be just as passionate in listening to those who do not feel it represents them,” Cuban’s statement read.
The NBA had initially said the decision to play the anthem was up to individual franchises, but when Cuban’s move sparked a huge debate on social media and drew attention in Washington — the White House was asked to weigh in on the matter Wednesday after several lawmakers slammed Cuban and the NBA — the league had a change of heart.
“With NBA teams now in the process of welcoming fans back into their arenas, all teams will play the national anthem in keeping with longstanding league policy,” the league said.
Cuban made the decision to cancel “The Star-Spangled Banner” before the season began in December, according to The Athletic. ESPN added that Cuban made the decision after consulting with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.
The billionaire Cuban, a longtime supporter of activism in sports, has flirted with the prospect of a presidential run and in recent years clashed frequently with former President Donald Trump and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, over social justice issues.
“The National Anthem Police in this country are out of control,” Cuban tweeted in July. “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.”
Cuban’s comments were echoed by New Orleans coach Stan Van Gundy.
“This should happen everywhere,” he tweeted Wednesday. “If you think the anthem needs to be played before sporting events, then play it before every movie, concert, church service and the start of every workday at every business. What good reason is there to play the anthem before a game?”
But the backlash, especially among Republican lawmakers, threatened to boil over. In Austin, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick urged Cuban to “sell the franchise.” Other GOP lawmakers suggested the tax breaks received by the American Airlines Center, the team’s home arena, should be reviewed.
Playing “The Star-Spangled Banner” ahead of games hasn’t always been commonplace, according to Dr. Mark Clague, an associate professor of musicology at the University of Michigan who has studied the history of the song.
Clague said the first documented playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner” before a sporting event occurred May 15, 1862. The country was in the grips of the Civil War, and a live band at a baseball game in Brooklyn, New York, played the tune. During World War I, “The Star-Spangled Banner” was used to inspire patriotism.
In the buildup to entering World War II, the national anthem became a regular part of athletic contests, though when the war ended, the tradition didn’t stick. Particularly in the 1960s and 1970s — when racial tensions and Vietnam War dissent were intense — some sports teams turned away from the song.
“Over time, it’s sort of ebbed-and-flowed,” Clague said. “There were a lot of sporting events at which they substituted ‘America the Beautiful’ instead of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ because of its military associations or didn’t play a patriotic song at all.”
Demonstrations during the song have gained traction since 2016, when San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began kneeling to draw attention to police brutality and social injustice in America.
Critics of Kaepernick’s actions claimed he was disrespecting the flag and military by kneeling, and the practice drew the ire of former President Trump, among others.
NBA players protested during the anthem while in the Walt Disney World bubble last summer, and “Black Lives Matter” was displayed prominently on the court. Ahead of the 2020 WNBA season opener, the New York Liberty and Seattle Storm left the court during “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
• Andy Kostka can be reached at akostka@washingtontimes.com.
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