EVER?

Via Yahoo, Johnny Ludden writes about the out-of-control nature of Mavericks home games. Two-thirds of the way through the column, he finally points the finger in the right direction, at the leader responsible, Mark Cuban. From the article:

"Cuban is brilliant, and he’s been a tremendous owner for the Mavs, turning the sad-sack franchise into a contender. But he’s never seemed to understand how his actions set the tone for the franchise and its fans.

(Fans think:) If Mark Cuban can insult K-Mart’s mom, then why shouldn’t I join in the fun?"

Sound familiar? It's the story of the Red Sox since 2002. Let's replace subjects:

"Lucchino is brilliant, and he’s been a tremendous owner for the Red Sox, turning the sad-sack franchise into a contender. But he’s never seemed to understand how his actions set the tone for the franchise and its fans.

(Fans think:) If Larry Lucchino can indulge in Reaganesque demonizations of the Yankees, calling the organization an 'evil empire', then why shouldn’t I join in the fun?"

I've talked at length about the Red Sox, but this bears mentioning: When Larry Lucchino pulled a Cuban (or should it be the other way around?) by referring to the Yankees as an "evil empire", one of Boston's greatest columnists, the late Will McDonough of the Boston Globe, ripped Lucchino apart in his next column. And in an interview shortly afterwards, McDonough, a career sports journalist with over 40 years of experience in the field, had this to say about Lucchino's remarks:

"I thought it was one of the dumbest things I've ever seen..."