Jason Lutin, who is long-serving Chief of Staff for Mark Cuban Companies, had been close to the Adelson family for many years. Through Lutin, the relationship between Mark Cuban and the Adelson family grew over the past several years which ultimately led to his sale of the Dallas Mavericks to the family.
Adelson’s son, Matan, was once an intern with the Mavericks. Matan now owns Hapoel Jerusalem in the Israeli league.
Lutin’s prominent presence as a trusted associate to both Cuban and the Adelsons helped give credence to the idea that Cuban would retain control of basketball operations. When Cuban sold his majority stake in the Mavericks late in 2023, it was reported that he would retain control of basketball decisions “forevermore.”
But approximately two months later by the February trade deadline, sources tell The Stein Line that Cuban’s influence over basketball decisions had diminished significantly. Cuban wasn’t even informed of the Mavericks’ decision to trade Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers until it was already agreed upon.