Jeanie Buss, the current governor of the Los Angeles Lakers, is openly disputing a plan put forward by her brothers and sisters to dispose of the family’s last 17.8 percent stake in the franchise. The disagreement centers on a high‑profile transaction that was announced earlier this month, in which Josh Kushner—a prominent venture capitalist and brother‑in‑law to former President Donald Trump’s son‑in‑law Jared Kushner—and Bob Iger, the former chief executive of The Walt Disney Company, agreed to purchase a controlling interest in the Lakers. The deal values the storied basketball club at roughly $12.5 billion (about £9.3 billion), a sum that would set a new benchmark for any professional sports organization.
According to reports, Kushan and Iger intend to acquire roughly 65 percent of the team from Mark Walter, a billionaire investor who also holds a share of the Los Angeles Dodgers and partners with Chelsea Football Club chairman Todd Boehly. If the transaction with the Buss family proceeds as envisioned, the new ownership consortium would control approximately 83 percent of the Lakers, effectively handing the reins of the franchise to the Kushner‑Iger partnership. Jeanie Buss has served as the Lakers’ governor since 2013, a role she assumed after the death of her father, Jerry Buss, who bought the team in 1979 and turned it into a global brand.
In 2022, Jeanie led the family’s decision to sell a controlling interest to Mark Walter for a reported $10 billion, a deal that preserved her position as governor through 2030. That arrangement required her to retain at least a 15 percent ownership share, a threshold mandated by the NBA’s governance rules for anyone who wishes to hold the governor title. The current proposal threatens to eliminate Jeanie’s stake entirely, which would automatically disqualify her from the governor role because she would fall below the 15 percent ownership floor.
The Buss family issued a statement on Monday indicating that they had collectively decided to sell the remaining trust shares to the Bob Iger group as part of the broader transaction. The statement read, “We love the Lakers, Lakers 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.” However, Jeanie’s legal representative, attorney Adam Streisand, promptly sent a letter to the five other Buss siblings asserting that any attempt to sell the trust’s interest would be null and void. The letter, cited by ESPN, emphasized that the co‑trustees are obligated to maintain the minimum 15 percent ownership requirement so that Jeanie can continue as the controlling owner.
Streisand warned that any deviation from this duty would constitute a breach of trust, a violation of fiduciary responsibilities, and could even be deemed contempt of court. The Buss family’s involvement with the Lakers spans more than four decades and includes 11 of the franchise’s 17 NBA championships. Since Jerry Buss’s passing, the siblings have been embroiled in a series of internal disputes.
In 2017, Jeanie dismissed Jim Buss from his position as head of basketball operations, a move that ignited a legal battle when Jim and another brother, Johnny, attempted to remove her as the controlling owner. More recently, in November of the previous year, brothers Joey and Jesse were also let go from their front‑office roles within the organization.
The proposed sale to Kushner and Iger still requires approval from the NBA’s Board of Governors, a process that could take several months. Adding another layer of complexity, Josh Kushner’s name has been linked to a controversial initiative spearheaded by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, which sought to sell stakes in FIFA’s major competitions to private investors.
Kushner’s venture‑capital firm, Thrive Eternal, was initially slated to lead the investor group for the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” proposal, but the plan was abandoned after intense criticism and boycott threats from continental confederations, including UEFA. If the deal ultimately goes through, the Lakers would join an exclusive club of sports franchises that have been valued in the double‑digit billions, reflecting both the team’s on‑court success and its massive global brand. Yet the internal family conflict underscores how ownership transitions in professional sports can be as dramatic off the court as any playoff series. The outcome will determine not only who holds the majority share of one of the NBA’s most iconic teams but also whether Jeanie Buss will retain her historic role as governor, a position she has held for over a decade and that has been integral to the Lakers’ continued relevance in the modern sports landscape.
Regardless of the final verdict, the saga highlights the intricate interplay between family trusts, fiduciary duties, and league governance rules. It also serves as a reminder that the business of basketball, especially at the level of a franchise like the Lakers, involves high‑stakes negotiations, multi‑billion‑dollar valuations, and the personal ambitions of some of the most influential figures in both sports and business.