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The owner of the Dallas Mavericks has been chatting on the website of the Dallas Morning News. He fields a lot of questions about the makeup of the Mavericks' roster -- which, naturally, he defends -- and then is asked about the longevity of his superstar. Mark Cuban writes:

I think Dirk can be a strong contributor for years to come. One thing about dirk, he isnt a high flyer. He isnt even a low flyer :). The guys like to kid him that you have to throw him Alley Unders , not Alley Oops. He is a skill player that doesnt depend on athleticism , which I think can help him out.

Look at ray allen, he continues to be a great player, as do many others who are 4 and 5 years older than dirk

UPDATE: Later in the chat, a commenter takes Cuban to task for his embarrassing behavior during games, and asks him if he'll change. Cuban's response:

This will be my 10th year. I promise you Im not going to change.

the real question is why anyone would be embarrassd by the actions of someone they dont know ? Or why you think you are entitled to judge someone you dont know ?

Hows about you be you, and I will be me. We are one big happy family ? Next time I see you, we can hug it all out. Ok ?

Cuban also says, by the way, that in the Mavericks' assessment, Shawn Marion's performance has not dropped off. Instead he has been asked to play slower, and has not been featured much.