Stan Van Gundy takes shot at Mark Cuban over play-in tournament criticism

Stan Van Gundy thinks that Mark Cuban’s criticisms about the NBA’s upcoming play-in tournament are pretty rich.

Cuban, the Dallas Mavericks owner, recently voiced disagreement with the play-in, which will see the seventh through tenth seeds in each conference compete separately for the final two playoff spots. The New Orleans Pelicans coach Van Gundy said Sunday that Cuban had actually pushed for the idea.

“I thought it was funny that Mark Cuban, who I absolutely love, pushed it,” said Van Gundy, per USA TODAY Sports. “Not only did he vote for it, but he pushed it. And now that they’re sitting where they are, they don’t like it.”

Cuban’s Mavs are currently seventh in the West, putting them in the play-in zone. His criticism was that the play-in would exacerbate the stresses of the condensed schedule this season. You can read Cuban’s full comments here.

Van Gundy’s Pelicans are a bit further behind, sitting 3 games back of the play-in zone at 25-32. His remarks were probably slightly in jest since he did say he is fond of Cuban. But as someone who was privy to the negotiations for the play-in tournament when they happened, Van Gundy can see the irony in Cuban seemingly changing his tune.