Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Jeanie Buss Escapes Big Lakers Crisis After $10 Billion Sale

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Mark Phelps | Last updated Jun 20, 2025 1:21 PM ET

The Buss family — owners of the Los Angeles Lakers since the late Dr. Jerry Buss purchased the team in 1979 — has agreed to sell its majority stake in the franchise at a record $10 billion valuation, making this the most expensive sale of a U.S. professional sports team to date.

The deal was led by Jeanie Buss, Jerry's daughter, who originally acquired the Lakers, the Kings and The Forum for just $67.5 million.

The buyer is Mark Walter, CEO of Guggenheim Partners and TWG Global. Already a minority owner since acquiring approximately 20-27% in 2021 (alongside Todd Boehly), Walter exercised his right of first refusal to purchase the Buss family's controlling interest.

As part of the deal, current team governor Jeanie Buss intends to remain as team governor, although it is unclear exactly how much additional equity Walter will acquire. Under NBA rules, a team governor must hold at least a 15% stake in the franchise.

As team governor, she will continue to benefit from the Lakers’ current local television deal with Spectrum that runs through 2032. During a recent episode of "The Hoop Collective," veteran insiders Brian Windhorst, Tim Bontemps and Tim MacMahon addressed the significance of this television deal.

“For the Lakers, that local television deal is why the Buss family could exist and why they could operate the team,” Bontemps said.

The Spectrum agreement paid the Lakers $184.7 million this season, with incremental increases through 2032. For comparison, the Boston Celtics’ local TV deal with NBC Sports Boston is reportedly worth just $53.97 million for the upcoming season.

“The Lakers’ primary source of income is their local TV deal,” Windhorst added.

While the Spectrum contract secures the team financially for now, the future remains uncertain amid declining NBA TV viewership and the collapse of many regional sports networks (RSNs).

“As the RSNs, the regional sports networks across the country have all fallen off, yes, the Spectrum deal is still in place with the Lakers and with the Dodgers, ironically, I believe," Bontemps continued. "But at some point, paying an exorbitant number even for Laker games, that’s gonna run out."

Had Jeanie Buss stayed the majority owner, she might have faced the brunt of criticism amid the team’s potential financial crisis. But the sale might prove genius in saving her family from future embarrassment.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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