The Los Angeles Lakers are being offered in a record-shattering $10 billion deal, making the storied NBA franchise essentially the most precious sports activities group in U.S. historical past, ESPN reported Wednesday.
The landmark settlement transfers controlling curiosity from the Buss household to billionaire Mark Walter, who already owns a minority stake within the group.
While Jeanie Buss will stay in place because the group’s governor, the sale brings an finish to the Buss household’s 46-year stewardship of the purple and gold – an period that delivered 11 NBA championships and turned the Lakers into a worldwide model.
Walter, the chief government of holding agency TWG Global, has quietly constructed a sports activities empire. He owns Major League Baseball’s Los Angeles Dodgers, the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks, and is a co-owner of English Premier League membership Chelsea.
TWG additionally owns the Billie Jean King Cup tennis match and the Cadillac Formula One group.
While additional specifics of the deal weren’t disclosed, Lakers legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson – a business associate of Walter – was among the many first to react publicly.
“Laker fans should be ecstatic,” Johnson wrote on X.
“A few things I can tell you about Mark – he is driven by winning, excellence and doing everything the right way. And he will put in the resources needed to win! I can understand why Jeanie sold the team to Mark Walter because they are just alike.”
‘The best option’
Johnson cited Walter’s management with the Dodgers as a cause for optimism. The Dodgers have received the World Series twice since Walter’s group took over and have adopted an aggressive recruitment technique lately, together with the blockbuster 10-year, $700 million signing of Japanese star Shohei Ohtani.
“Mark is the best choice and will be the best caretaker of the Laker brand,” Johnson wrote. “The proof is in the pudding on what he’s been able to accomplish with the L.A. Dodgers. Mark has been nothing short of a winner.”
The Buss household’s sale of the Lakers marks the top of a defining period for the NBA – one which helped form the league’s trendy reputation.
Jerry Buss, a charismatic actual property tycoon, bought the Lakers in 1979 and rapidly reworked the franchise right into a powerhouse on and off the court docket.
Under his management, the group received 11 championships – greater than another NBA franchise over the identical span – and ushered in iconic eras, together with the “Showtime” Lakers of the Nineteen Eighties and the early 2000s dynasty led by Kobe Bryant.
More lately, the Lakers added celebrity LeBron James, who led the group to its seventeenth championship in 2020. The group made headlines once more this 12 months by buying Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic in a shocking transfer.
Walter grew to become a minority proprietor in 2021 in a deal that included proper of first refusal ought to the Buss household select to promote.
The $10 billion sale smashes the earlier U.S. sports activities document – the $6.1 billion paid for the Boston Celtics earlier this 12 months.
That deal had damaged the $6.05 billion mark set by Josh Harris’s buy of the NFL’s Washington Commanders in 2023.
Source: www.dailysabah.com