Mark Cuban knows marketing.
He also knows that the players picked in the second half of the second round of the NBA draft almost never stick, so it’s a good time to take some big risks.
In a wide ranging pregame conversation before his Mavericks lost to the Lakers Tuesday night, Cuban said that he would consider drafting Baylor women’s college basketball star Brittney Griner in the second round of the NBA draft.
“If she is the best on the board, I would take her,” Cuban said. “I’ve thought about it. I’ve thought about it already. Would I do it? Right now, I’d lean toward yes, just to see if she can do it. You never know unless you give somebody a chance.”
Griner is up for it she said on twitter.
Mark Cuban may draft Brittney Griner http://t.co/FQ16Q0YPqw ... I would hold my own! Lets do it
— Brittney Griner (@brittneygriner) April 3, 2013
Griner has been a dominant force in college basketball — she’s a three-time All American, is the national player of the year, she has good size at 6’8” and is a shot blocker who can score inside or out. She will be the top pick in the WNBA draft. She can flat out play ball, do not sell her short. That said, I’m not sure she’s ready for the NBA. She’s athletic but the NBA is a whole different level.
Drafting her would be a publicity stunt, but one the NBA has seen before — UCLA star Ann Meyers tried out for the Pacers in 1979.
What would be both good marketing and more of a test to see how she could do at a higher level would be to put her on the Mavericks’ Summer League team in Las Vegas. The marketing potential would be big, something Cuban admitted, and Griner could see if she fit. The more I think about it, the more I like that idea. While it would pull her away from the WNBA season for a few weeks what that could do for that league’s marketing would be huge. It would be fun for everyone.