Have what it takes to own a pro sports franchise?
[MLB BASEBALL/NBA BASKETBALL] Have what it takes to own a pro sports franchise?
As a fan of the two sports discussion programs on ESPN - Pardon the Interruption and Around the Horn (check local guides) - I have come to appreciate the direct approach that Chicago Sun-Times columnist Jay Mariotti takes with his journalism. He's a sports writer who can pass opinion (that is actually based on something solid) on a range of sports but as his main job is based in Chicago he follows the White Sox and Cubs in MLB, Bulls in the NBA and the Bears in the NFL. However I've yet to really hear him talk about the Blackhawks who represent the NHL - but you'll find that Ice Hockey in general gets the raw end of the deal most times when up against the Big 3 of Baseball, Basketball and Football.
In his most recent column, Mariotti discusses the possibility that the owner of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks - Mark Cuban - may look to buy into the Chicago Cubs baseball franchise and in doing so, as Mariotti believes, give the team and the city hope that their beloved Cubbies may just turn the corner.
The column is well worth checking out for yourself but in relation to the title of this blog - the piece gives you an insight into three key areas of ownership when it comes to professional sports. One, you need the cash and Cuban clearly has that. Two, if your players love you because you pamper them - you are on the way to getting them to put in (for the first few years at least). And finally, Three, you need to be able to play the political game and outmanoeuvre your opponents who despite years of ineptitude on the ownership front - still have friends in all the right places.
Judging by the contents of the column, Cuban has the first two ticked off the checklist... but whether or not he wants to have to deal in the political aspect of ownership will likely decide his course of action with the Chicago Cubs.
Check out Jay Mariotti's column at:
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