Dallas Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban defended NBA commissioner Adam Silver following the backlash he received for his comments on Wednesday.In a press conference, Silver addressed the rising costs of watching an NBA game. He was heavily criticized after saying that basketball is a "highlight league" and fans can consume the league for free on several social media platforms.On Thursday, Cuban, who is a former NBA governor, acknowledged Silver's comments while highlighting the NBA commissioner's work for fans behind the scenes."Adam definitely whiffed on this one," Cuban tweeted on Thursday. "But I can tell you that unless a lot has changed in the last 20 months, he is one of the people standing up for fans in a room where a lot of owners are not."As the longtime controlling owner of the Mavericks, Cuban has worked with Silver since being named the commissioner in 2014. Cuban sold his majority stake in 2023.What did Adam Silver exactly say that earned the ire of fans?On Wednesday, NBA commissioner Adam Silver spoke to reporters in a press conference surrounding the league's preseason board of governors' meeting. Silver's remarks in response to a question about the declining viewership and rising costs to watch games raised eyebrows."There's a huge amount of our content that people can essentially consume for free," Silver said. "I mean, this is very much a highlights-based sport. So Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, you name it. Any service, the New York Times, for that matter, to the extent that your content is not behind a paid firewall."There's an enormous amount of content out there. YouTube, another example that is advertising-based, that consumers can consume."Fans are concerned with the availability of games next season. Following the end of TNT's broadcasting deal with the NBA last season, four different services will broadcast games starting in 2025-26: ESPN/ABC, NBC, Peacock and Amazon Prime.In addition to the standard cable package, Peacock and Amazon Prime may require a separate subscription, which could jack up the cost to watch games. The other option, an NBA League Pass subscription, has also been deemed expensive by fans.