The Buss family voted on Monday, August 17, 2026, to sell its remaining 17.8% minority stake in the Los Angeles Lakers to new majority owners Bob Iger and Josh Kushner. The decision ends the family’s 47-year tenure with the franchise and removes Jeanie Buss from her role as team governor.
The move follows a volatile period of ownership shifts. Last week, majority owner Mark Walter agreed to sell the team to Iger and Kushner in a deal that valued the Lakers at $12.5 billion. By relinquishing their remaining shares, the Buss family allows the Iger-Kushner group to increase their total control of the franchise to approximately 83%.
The 15 Percent Threshold and Jeanie Buss’s Governorship
The sale of the minority stake effectively terminates Jeanie Buss’s tenure as the Lakers’ governor. While Iger previously stated the new ownership group intended to honor an agreement that would have allowed Buss to remain in the role through 2030, league rules create a hard barrier: governors must control at least 15 percent of team ownership to serve in that capacity.
Because the family is selling its entire 17.8% stake, Buss will no longer meet this minimum ownership requirement. This marks a significant shift for the franchise, as the Lakers had operated essentially as a family business for nearly half a century despite the corporate evolution of professional sports.
“We have decided as a family to sell the remaining Buss Family Trust shares to the Bob Iger group as part of the ongoing transaction. We love the Lakers, Laker 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.”
The Buss Family, via NBC News
Trustee Votes and the Tag-Along Provision
The decision to exit was not a foregone conclusion. The Buss family trust, consisting of the six children of late owner Jerry Buss—Jeanie, Jim, Johnny, Janie, Joey, and Jesse—required a majority vote to proceed. According to reporting from The New York Times, at least four of the six beneficiaries needed to approve the intent to sell.
The vote allowed the trust’s three trustees—Jeanie, Janie, and Joey Buss—to enact a tag-along provision tied to Mark Walter’s sale to the Iger-Kushner group. This provision ensured the family could sell their shares at the same $12.5 billion valuation applied to the majority stake.
Ownership Timeline: From $67.5 Million to $12.5 Billion
The financial trajectory of the Lakers under the Buss family reflects the explosive growth of the NBA. Jerry Buss originally purchased the Lakers, the Forum arena, and the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings in 1979 for $67.5 million. By June 2025, the family voted to sell the controlling interest to Mark Walter at a valuation of $10 billion, a deal that closed in October 2025 and provided each sibling with $500 million post-tax.
| Year | Transaction/Event | Valuation/Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Jerry Buss purchases Lakers, Kings, and Forum | $67.5 million |
| June 2025 | Buss family sells controlling interest to Mark Walter | $10 billion |
| August 2026 | Walter sells to Iger/Kushner; Buss family exits | $12.5 billion |
Internal Conflict and Mark Walter’s Exit
The exit comes amid a history of friction within the Buss family. Following Jerry Buss’s death in 2013, the siblings engaged in frequent conflicts. Jeanie Buss fired Jim from his role as head of basketball operations in 2017, which led to a lawsuit from her brothers who attempted to oust her as controlling owner. More recently, Joey and Jesse Buss were fired from their front-office positions in November 2025.
The speed of the current transition is tied to the circumstances surrounding Mark Walter.
The final transition of ownership now awaits approval from the NBA’s board of governors, a process that may take several months to complete.
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