Los Angeles Lakers governor Jeanie Buss is seeking to prevent her siblings from selling the remaining portion of family-held equity in the storied NBA franchise, according to reports. The move sets up a potential legal and boardroom clash over control of one of basketball’s most valuable and historic organizations.
Why is Jeanie Buss opposing the sale?
Jeanie Buss has served as the Lakers’ controlling governor since inheriting leadership of the franchise following the death of her father, Jerry Buss, in 2013. She has continued to represent the family at league level even as the club’s broader ownership structure has evolved through outside investment in recent years. Her attempt to block the sale suggests she wants to retain the Buss family’s remaining direct stake rather than see it pass to outside hands, though the precise terms of her siblings’ proposed sale have not been detailed publicly.
The dispute centers on control of the family’s last remaining ownership share in the franchise, sources close to the situation indicate.
What does this mean for Lakers ownership?
The Buss family has been synonymous with the Lakers since Jerry Buss purchased the team in 1979, overseeing an era that included multiple NBA championships. In 2024, the franchise’s valuation soared after a deal that brought in businessman Mark Walter’s Guggenheim-linked ownership group as controlling investors, a transaction that reportedly valued the Lakers at roughly $10 billion. Jeanie Buss retained her role as governor under that arrangement, while family members continued to hold a smaller residual stake in the club.
Any further sale of that remaining family-held equity could reduce the Buss family’s influence over the organization even further, which appears to be the central concern driving Jeanie Buss’s effort to intervene. It remains unclear whether the disagreement will be resolved internally or could escalate into a formal legal dispute among the siblings.
What happens next?
No timeline has been confirmed for how the ownership disagreement will be settled, and neither Jeanie Buss nor her siblings have issued detailed public statements on the matter. The outcome could have significant implications for the balance of power within one of the NBA’s flagship franchises as it continues under its newer majority ownership group.
