DALLAS (AP) — The Dallas Mavericks hired Ethan Casson in a new role as president Tuesday, giving CEO Rick Welts someone to handle daily operations on the business side while he focuses on the franchise’s plans for a new arena.
Casson was most recently CEO of the Minnesota Timberwolves along with the WNBA’s Lynx and the G-League’s Iowa Wolves. He served in that role for nine years.
The addition of Casson comes seven months after Welts came out of retirement to replace Cynt Marshall, who was hired by then-owner Mark Cuban in the wake of a sexual harassment scandal in the business office of the Mavericks.
Cuban sold his majority interest in the club to the Las Vegas-based Adelson and Dumont families in late 2023. Patrick Dumont took over as the team’s governor, with Cuban keeping a minority stake and becoming alternate governor.
“The Mavericks are committed to being an elite professional sports franchise, and fundamental to that goal is adding top-tier executives like Ethan Casson to our senior management team,” Dumont said.
Welts has said the club hopes to open a new arena in 2031. In his previous role with Golden State, Welts spearheaded the plan that moved the Warriors across the bay to San Francisco from Oakland.
The Mavericks share American Airlines Center with the NHL’s Dallas Stars, and Welts has said the NBA club anticipates going solo with a new arena. Welts has said the Mavs want the new arena to be in Dallas rather than one of the suburbs.
Before joining the Timberwolves, Casson was CEO of the San Francisco 49ers when the NFL franchise made the move to Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara from Candlestick Park. Casson struck the naming rights deal with Levi’s.
“He will be my partner in charting the team into the future and will allow me to devote more time to our strategic priorities, including the building of our new arena and entertainment district in Dallas, and our transition from a basketball organization to a sports and entertainment company operating our own venue,” Welts said.
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