For a second consecutive year, the Lakers are being sold to a new ownership group.
According to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN (Twitter link), just 14 months after reaching an agreement to buy a controlling stake in the Lakers for a record-setting valuation of $10 billion and less than 10 months after the NBA’s Board of Governors approved that sale, Mark Walter is selling the franchise to American businessmen Joshua Kushner and Bob Iger.
Sources tell Shelburne that the sale will set a new record, with the Lakers being valued at more than $12 billion.
“As lifelong NBA fans, we are deeply honored for the opportunity to become stewards of the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the most iconic sports franchises in the world,” Kushner and Iger said in a statement to Shelburne (Twitter link). “We have immense respect for the leadership and vision of (former Lakers owner) Jerry (Buss) and (team governor) Jeanie Buss. Our long-term commitment is to build on that foundation, compete at the highest level, and serve this extraordinary team, its fans, and the city of Los Angeles.”
Walter also issued a statement to ESPN, per Shelburne (Twitter link). It reads as follows:
“Owning the Los Angeles Lakers has been one of the great honors of my life – an extraordinary investment, but what I will carry with me is the community, the fans, and a city that treats this team as family. I am grateful to Jeanie Buss, the Buss family, the players, and the staff for welcoming me into this chapter. The Lakers belong to Los Angeles, and I have every confidence the best is still ahead.”
The news comes as a shock, given the timing and the fact that Walter – who is also the controlling owner of MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers – had gone to great lengths since taking control of the Lakers to build out the team’s infrastructure and expand its front office.
While we’ll have to wait for more of the story to come out, it’s certainly worth noting that Walter’s financial affairs have been the subject of a federal law enforcement investigation, as Laurence Darmiento of The Los Angeles Times detailed last week. Law enforcement officials are reportedly looking into $21 billion in undisclosed loans made by insurers Walter owns to companies with ties to him.
More to come…