The Buss family is entering into an agreement to sell majority ownership of the Los Angeles Lakers to Mark Walter for a franchise valuation of approximately $10 billion, sources told ESPN on Wednesday, the most ever for a U.S. professional sports franchise.
The Buss family will keep a minority share of the team, just over 15%, for a period of time, a source said.
In addition, Jeanie Buss will remain the Lakers' governor and continue to run the team for «at least a number of years,» sources with knowledge of the deal told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne. It was guaranteed as part of the agreement that Buss would remain in charge for the foreseeable future, and Walter fully endorsed this plan, according to sources.
Walter, the CEO and chairman of diversified holding company TWG Global, has interests in multiple professional sports organizations, including the Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Sparks, the Billie Jean Cup, Cadillac Formula 1 team and the Professional Women's Hockey League.
The Lakers have been owned by the Buss family since 1979, when Jerry Buss purchased the franchise from Jack Kent Cooke in a $67.5 million transaction that also included the Los Angeles Kings and the Forum. Since 1980, the Lakers have won 11 championships, the most by any NBA team during that span.
The Lakers were passed to Buss' children when he died in 2013, and his daughter Jeanie has served as the Lakers' governor since.
Walter has been a stakeholder in the Lakers since 2021, when he purchased Phil Anschutz's share of 26%. That was also when Walter received a right of first refusal on the majority share of the team.
Franchise legend Magic Johnson, a business partner of Walter's and someone extremely close to Jeanie Buss, endorsed the move in a
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