Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks and an outside-the-box thinker, said he would consider taking Brittney Griner, the dunking center of Baylor's women's basketball team, in the second round of the NBA draft. If the Mavericks do not draft her, he said he would have "no problem" inviting her to camp and allowing her to try to make the team that way.
Griner, the star of the Baylor women's basketball team for the past four years, averaged 23.8 points per game, 9.4 rebounds, and a staggering 4.4 blocks. She stands at six feet, eight inches, and shot nearly 61 percent from the field this season.
Cuban is quoted on ESPN.com saying, "If she is the best on the board, I will take her. 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, and it's not like the likelihood of any late-50s draft pick has a good chance of making it."
Griner, who has dunked 18 times in her college career, expressed interest in Cuban's remarks on Twitter, tweeting out "I would hold my own! Let's do it."
While he said he's "absolutely serious" about giving Griner a chance to make it, it would be up to her to make the team legitimately. "She'd still have to make the team," Cuban said. "I'm not going to carry her just to carry her. I don't think, anyways. But I certainly wouldn't be opposed to giving her the opportunity." While Griner's numbers are gaudy, Cuban said it is difficult to scout her because of the level of opposition she's faced.
Griner wouldn't be the first woman to try out for an NBA team. In 1979, UCLA women's star Ann Meyers attempted to make the Indiana Pacers' roster. She didn't make the team, but she did become a Pacers' broadcaster.
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