Tennis legends Serena Williams and her older sister Venus Williams host the “Stockton Street” podcast, which releases a new episode every Wednesday at 11 a.m. EST on X. On the latest episode, the Williams sisters hosted business tycoon and Dallas Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban, who is worth an estimated $6 billion (as per Celebrity Net Worth), for an immersive discussion about the business of winning.
While Cuban touched on many topics throughout the episode, he elaborated on the impactful changes he brought to the organization after becoming the majority owner of the franchise in January 2000. Those changes helped the Mavericks’ winning percentage rise to 69%, reach the 2006 NBA Finals, and finally claim the first championship in franchise history in 2011. He is now the minority owner of the team.
Explaining the changes with an example where the team travelled to Oakland to play the Warriors, Cuban said (26:45):
“I talked to the guys, and they’re like, ‘Look, we go in to play the Golden State Warriors in Oakland, California. We land at 3 a.m., and we’re staying at a hotel that doesn’t have room service.'”
“So, I put them in the best hotels, upgraded the plane. So bought our own plane. We were the first team to have its own plane. You know, just made sure, got guys suites when we got there, redid all the locker rooms, you know, got them everything, because I wanted the guys not to have to worry about the off-the-court stuff,” he added.
“If I’m going to expect a lot from you, you get to expect a lot from me. I’m going to respect you. But when I say you got to play, give your all, and commit to the coach and the team, I’m backing that up. You’ve got to back up your side. And that was the real cultural change on the court,” Cuban concluded.
The Williams sisters seemed extremely impressed by Cuban’s efforts for his players.
Like Mark Cuban, Serena Williams is Also the Owner of a Basketball Team
Williams is not far behind Cuban, as she, too, is now a proud owner of a basketball team. Williams joined the Toronto Tempo team’s ownership group as a major stakeholder in March 2025. The Tempo, alongside the Portland Fire, is the latest WNBA expansion team, set to begin play in 2026.
Last year, the Golden State Valkyries joined the WNBA, and three more teams from Cleveland, Detroit, and Philadelphia will begin play in 2028, 2029, and 2030, respectively. With ownership of the Tempo, Williams added another nugget to her ever-expanding entrepreneurial empire since retiring from professional tennis in 2022.
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