Why Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban Is Unhappy With Luka Doncic Mural

Artist Preston Pannek’s mural criticized the Dallas front office amid the team’s struggles.

The Mavericks have found tough sledding in year five with superstar guard Luka Dončić. Dallas is 24–21, but a very tentative 24–21—only two and a half games separate the Mavericks from the 12th-place Thunder in a crowded Western Conference.

Dallas’s struggles to break into the West’s top echelon have drawn the ire of Mavericks fans, and one such fan, Preston Pannek, used his artistic talent to sound off.

A mural painted by Pannek in Dallas's Deep Ellum neighborhood depicts a frowning Dončić holding a sign that says “Please Send Help.” In the depiction, he is flanked by some of his more impressive stat lines from the 2023 season—including his 60-point, 21-rebound, 10-assist masterpiece against the Knicks on Dec. 27.

However, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is reportedly displeased with the mural. In emails shown by Pannek to Mavs Moneyball, Dallas’s SB Nation site, Cuban calls the mural “disrespectful.”

“It’s disrespectful,” Cuban reportedly wrote. “But it’s your choice to do what you want. If that’s the way you want to be a fan. Go for it.”

Cuban later admonished Pannek again, telling him, "Not being the first to say something always justifies what you say, Preston. I appreciate the other murals you have done. You truly have artistic talent.”

Pannek called the emails “odd” and expressed surprise at how Cuban handled the situation.

As for Dallas, it hosts the Hawks Wednesday in its next game to kick off a four-game, seven-day homestand.