"Luka Magic and a 5'2" Vietnamese lady": Elon Musk's preposterous Mavericks proposal to Mark Cuban earns NBA fans' ire

Two of the world's leading business tycoons, former Dallas Mavericks' majority owner Mark Cuban and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk, got into a tussle on X. Cuban seemingly began the back-and-forth after Musk deemed DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) as another word for "racism."

Musk believed in Pershing Square Captial's CEO Bill Ackman's opinion on DEI's ideology, claiming it's the root cause for "antisemitism" at Harvard.

"DEI is just another word for racism," Musk replied to Ackman's tweet. "Shame on anyone who uses it."

Musk then replied to another tweet by journalist Ed Krassenstein, who opined that DEI isn't "racism."

"Discrimination on the basis of race, which DEI does, is literally the definition of racism."

Mark Cuban allied with Krassenstein on Musk's take and released his thread attempting to school Tesla Motors' CEO. In his messages, while defining diversity, Cuban said that the loss of 'DEI-phobic' companies is his gain. Musk noted Cuban's explanation and replied with a proposal for the Mavericks' organization.

"Cool, so when should we expect to see a short white/Asian women on the Mavs?"

NBA fans were not in agreement with Elon Musk's retaliation. It didn't fit the context in their eyes, considering the Mavericks' hires are athletes at the end of the day.

"LOL could be the secret competitive advantage he needs," wrote one 'X' user. "Luka magic and a 5’2” Vietnamese lady"

More reactions followed:

---

What did Mark Cuban say about Elon Musk's take on DEI ideologies?

Mark Cuban wasn't entertaining any of Elon Musk's views on DEI ideologies. The Shark Tank host vehemently ranted against Musk's belief with a long thread in which he debunked what diversity, equity and inclusion mean, along with an example and a conclusion.

One of the most striking parts of the ex-NBA team governor's pushback that caught Musk's eye was the part where he explained his version of what "diversity" meant in DEI.

"Good businesses look where others don't, to find the employees that will put your business in the best possible position to succeed," Cuban wrote. "So, companies that forgo DEI practices only stand to lose. The loss of DEI-Phobic companies is my gain."

It also isn't the first time Cuban has hit out on Musk. A few months ago, Cuban expressed dissatisfaction with Musk-owned Twitter's algorithm.

Cuban posted a long thread back then, too. However, it turned out to be a one-sided affair, with Musk not issuing any response to Cuban's comments, unlike Wednesday.