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This story originally appeared in the Jackson Free Press. It was added to the Mississippi Free Press website in 2025.
Note that any opinions expressed in legacy Jackson Free Press stories do not reflect a position of the Mississippi Free Press or necessarily of its staff and board members.

NBA superstar sexual predator Kobe Bryant gets his first day in court on Wednesday at around 5 p.m. CDT. Pick just about any channel, almost all of them will be showing it. How will the Kobe case rank among sports celebrity trials? But whatever happens, it won’t be good for the NBA, no matter what idiot Mavs owner Mark Cuban says.

Previous Comments

Why is everyone ganging up on Mark Cuban for stating the obvious? An awful lot of folks stand to make major loot through the destruction of the lives of two people. The media, tabloids, the NBA, damned talking head attorneys on every talk show, the IRS, democrats, the NRA, the moonies, etc. I’m not saying it’s right, I’m just saying it is. Now, if only I can figure out a way to make some money off it. Just joking. That’s what child slave labor is for.


Dr. S agrees that there are lots of people who stand to get rich off of the Kobe Bryant case. But I believe Cuban is wrong, because ultimately this case will drive away as many or more fans from the NBA than it attracts.

Mississippi native Donna Ladd and partner Todd Stauffer founded the Jackson Free Press in 2002 in the capital city. The heavily awarded local newspaper did many investigations heralded across the state and nation and served as a paper of record due to its diversity, inclusion, in-depth reporting and deep connection to readers and dedication to narrative change in and about Mississippi. In 2022, the nonprofit Mississippi Free Press, founded by Ladd and JFP Associate Publisher Kimberly Griffin in 2020, purchased the journalism assets and archives of the Jackson Free Press. A Google grant through AAN Publishers enabled Newspack's integration of the JFP archives into the Mississippi Free Press website to become part of a more searchable archive of recent Mississippi history and essential journalism.