The Buss family, which has been primary or minority owners of the Los Angeles Lakers since 1979, will sell its current 17.8% ownership to new owners Bob Iger and Josh Kushner, according to multiple reports on Monday.
If the sale is approved by the NBA, Jeanie Buss — who took over for her late father Jerry in 2013 — will be out as governor of the franchise.
NBA guidelines require controlling owners/governors to own at least 15% of a franchise.
The NBA has yet to approve last week’s shocking sale of the club from Mark Walter to Iger and Kushner for the record-breaking price of $12.5 billion.
“We have decided as a family to sell the remaining Buss Family Trust shares to the Bob Iger group as part of the ongoing transaction,” the family said in a statement to ESPN. “We love the Lakers, Laker fans and will continue to support Los Angeles; but it is time to use this opportunity to move on and exit gracefully while we still can.”
Fourteen months ago, Jeanie Buss spearheaded the sale of the franchise to Mark Walter for $10 billion, a then-record for a U.S. professional sports franchise. The Buss family trust — which is comprised of Jerry Buss’ six children — did vote to sell to Walter, although there was some in-fighting due to the perception of a rushed process.
Part of the agreement with Walter had Jeanie Buss staying on as governor through 2030, but her siblings were terminated from their positions with the organization following the sale.
Walter, the CEO and chair of diversified holding company TWG Global, owns MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers and the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks. He is currently under investigation by federal authorities for alleged tax fraud in four of his other business interests.
Should the sale go through, Iger and Kushner will own approximately 83% of the Lakers.
The NBA Board of Governors, which must approve this sale, does not meet until Sept. 15-16 in New York.
–Field Level Media
