Report: Buss family set to sell majority ownership of Los Angeles Lakers

In 2012, Walter led a group that ultimately purchased the Dodgers for more than $2 billion, reportedly spending $100 million of his own money in the process. He also has an ownership stake in the Los Angeles Sparks with a group of Dodgers partners while also owning several motorsport teams through TWG Global.

Since the Buss family took ownership of the Lakers in 1978, the franchise won 11 titles, the most recent of which came in 2020 in the COVID bubble. Players such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James suited up in the purple and gold in that window, as well. The “Showtime” Lakers were also a prominent part of the first decade of the Buss family’s ownership, led by Abdul-Jabbar and Johnson as they won five championships in the 1980s.

The Lakers’ pending sale is the second transaction involving one of the NBA’s marquee franchises. Last month, the Boston Celtics were sold for $6.05 billion to a group led by Bill Chisholm, who serves as a managing partner for Symphony Technology Group. That stood as the previous record sale for a sports team – until Wednesday.

Now, the Lakers are also going through a transition as the NBA Finals continue. Los Angeles went 50-32 this year – the first under head coach J.J. Redick – before falling in the first round of the playoffs. The franchise made quite the splash mid-year, though, when it acquired Luka Doncic in a blockbuster trade with the Dallas Mavericks which also sent Anthony Davis back to Dallas in return.