Copyright Heavy.
It’s official. The Buss family has sold their majority ownership share of the Los Angeles Lakers to Mark Walter, the current controlling owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers. While news of Walter’s purchase, or at least his initial steps in making the record-breaking deal, came months ago, the NBA Board of Governors has now made the sale official. According to a statement made by the league and commissioner Adam Silver, Walter will become the new majority owner of the Lakers. “The NBA Board of Governors has unanimously approved the sale of the majority interest in the Los Angeles Lakers to Mark Walter. The transaction is expected to close shortly,” the league said in its statement. “The Buss family, which has owned a majority stake in the Lakers since Dr. Jerry Buss bought the team in 1979, will retain an ongoing interest. Jeanie Buss will remain the team’s Governor for a period of at least five years following the closing of the transaction.” Before Walter’s purchase, Jeanie Buss had been leading the team since Dr. Jerry Buss died in 2013. The Buss family, specifically under the patriarch, led the Lakers to the most championships in any American sports league by a single ownership group. Lakers Sale To Mark Walter Official The news of the Lakers’ sale becoming official to Walter isn’t the biggest shock, as the unanimous vote to allow his purchase isn’t the only one in the past few months. In August, the Board of Governors also unanimously voted to approve the sale of the Boston Celtics to Bill Chisholm. The sale of both the Lakers and Celtics marks a unique point at which the two teams’ winning 45% of the league’s total titles are changing hands in a span of under four months. Walter, though, remains a worthy candidate to take over the historic Lakers franchise. He’s led the Dodgers to legendary heights at the helm and has been an owner of the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks for a number of years. “Mark Walter has a long association with our leagues, having served as a minority owner of the Lakers and as the principal owner of the WNBA’s Sparks for more than a decade,” Silver said in the statement. “As Mark assumes his role as majority owner of the Lakers, I have no doubt that he will be a committed steward of the team and a great addition to our league given his many successful ventures in business and sports.” The official valuation of Walter’s purchase put the Lakers at $10 billion, the most for a sale in professional sports history. According to the most recent data by Forbes, the Lakers are now the most valuable NBA team, surpassing the Golden State Warriors, and only behind the Dallas Cowboys, Los Angeles Rams, and New York Giants of the NFL. Buss’ Dynasty Comes To An End While Walter comes in as a billionaire with a strong history of putting his teams in winning positions, the sale likely won’t contribute to a lack of success on the Lakers’ front. However, his arrival does mean the end of the Buss’ ownership tenure, one in which they won 11 NBA titles since 1979. “I also want to thank and congratulate Jeanie Buss and the Buss family for 46 years of transformational leadership and service,” Silver added in the statement. “While this historic transaction transfers the Buss family’s majority interest in the Lakers, I am thrilled that Jeanie will remain the team’s Governor and an active and engaged member of our league.” Whether it be the ‘Showtime Lakers’, the Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant era, or LeBron James’ historic late-career run, the Buss family has been up front and a key part of some of the biggest moments in NBA history. While the current governor, Jeanie, will stay on in her role over the next few years, she has already expressed her hope for the team under Walter. “I have gotten to know Mark very well over time and been delighted to learn how he shares those same values,” Buss said in a previously made statement on the sale. “For the last four years, Mark has been an excellent partner to us, and we are thrilled to keep working with him to continue the Lakers’ extraordinary legacy.”
