Lakers Jeanie Buss attends the game against the Utah Jazz at Crypto.com Arena
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Less than a year after being approved as the new owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, which he purchased from the Buss family for a $10 billion valuation, Mark Walter has agreed to sell the franchise for a $12.5 billion valuation to former Disney CEO Bob Iger and businessman Josh Kushner.
This shocking development has been the talk of the NBA in recent weeks, especially about current team governor Jeanie Buss and her five siblings coming together to sell their remaining 17.8% stake in the team.
Although Jeanie had agreed with Walter during the 2025 sale to remain the team's governor for the next four years, she would ultimately be cast aside if the family completes its transaction with Iger and Kushner, the new majority owners. The siblings — Jim, Johnny, Janie, Joey and Jesse — have all voted to sell, and only four of the six votes were needed to enact the tag-along provision of Walter's sale, according to ESPN.
Jeanie is the only one in the Buss trust who voted against such a sale and is continuing to fight this transaction against her siblings with her legal team. She does not wish to leave the Lakers and wants to remain the team governor, but NBA rules state that team governors must own at least 15% of the franchise.
Regardless of what happens in the legal battle between Jeanie and her five siblings about selling the family's shares, there is still a path to her remaining with the team and the new ownership group of Iger and Kushner.
For starters, Watler's initial decision to have Buss serve as governor for the next four years, which was included in the 2025 agreement when the team was sold, is now considered part of the deal with Iger and Kushner, according to The Athletic.
But still, Iger and Kushner don't have a say in the family's ultimate decision to sell their ownership stake, which would effectively void Jeanie's ability to serve as the team's governor since she would own less than 15% of the franchise. The big question looming is whether the other five siblings can depart and Jeanie can figure out a way to maintain her position by increasing her personal ownership stake.
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Based on reporting from The Athletic, this is a scenario Buss is “open to exploring.”
The Lakers have been owned by the Buss family since 1979. When Jerry Buss passed away in 2013, he left his controlling 66% stake in the team to his six kids, with Jeanie taking over as the Lakers' governor and team representative on the NBA's Board of Governors.
In 2017, Jeanie fired her brother Jim, who served as the organization's head of basketball operations, eventually replacing him with franchise legend Magic Johnson. Jim and Johnny Buss attempted to remove Jeanie from her position at the top of the Lakers' totem pole by proposing a new board of directors that did not include her, but she eventually sued her brothers for breaching their duties as trustees.
This proposal from Jim and Johnny ultimately failed, which resulted in both resigning from the team and as co-trustees, and being replaced by Janie and Joey.
Now, Jeanie and her legal representation are citing back to what occurred in 2017 and the court order that ultimately gave her control of the Buss trust as the team's governor. Whether or not this will factor into the other five Buss siblings agreeing to sell their stakes to Iger and Kushner, which would force Jeanie out of her role with the franchise, remains a major question.
No matter what happens with the Buss family and the drama that continues to build, Iger and Kushner will still be taking over as the team's new controlling owners after Walter agreed to sell the organization.