Why Buss family is selling remaining stake in Lakers, bringing end to 57-year era in L.A.

Why Buss family is selling remaining stake in Lakers, bringing end to 57-year era in L.A. originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here. For the first time in more than half a century, the Buss family will have no involvement in the Lakers' backroom affairs. The infamous family officially parted ways with its ownership stake in the franchise on Monday, selling off its remaining 17.8% ownership stake to new owners Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner, according to ESPN's Shams Charania. With Monday's transaction, the Iger and Kushner-led ownership group retains about 83% of the ownership stake in Los Angeles. The Buss family's pockets will grow a little firmer with the move, the latest chapter in a curious process that started when Jeanie Buss and Co. sold a majority stake in the franchise last summer. Here's what we know about the Buss family's decision to give up its rights to the Lakers. MORE: Meet Josh Kushner and Bob Iger, the billionaires who purchased Lakers from Mark Walter Why Buss family is selling remaining stake in Lakers The Buss family announced its intention to sell its remaining 17.8% ownership stake in the Lakers to the Bob Iger- and Joshua Kushner-led consortium on Monday. With the transaction, Jeanie Buss will give up her right to remain governor — the NBA requires that controlling owners/governors own at least 15% of a franchise, per Charania. "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," the family said in a statement. "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." Charania reported that four of the six members of the Buss family trust — composed of siblings Jeanie, Jim, Johnny, Janie, Joey and Jesse — approved of the execution of the sale. A clause included in Walter's sale to Kushner and Iger helped facilitate the transaction. ESPN's Baxter Holmes reported that the Buss family's relationship fractured in the years following the death of its patriarch, Jerry. Multiple members of the family felt duped by Jeanie's actions in the sale process, believing the transaction was rushed, according to Charania. Each sibling pocketed about $500 million after taxes. Months after the sale went through, Jeanie sacked her siblings. All six siblings worked within the Lakers organization prior to Walter's purchase of the franchise. "I don't think my dad would be happy with the way things just went down," Janie Buss told ESPN. MORE: Where Lakers' $12.5 billion sale ranks among largest in U.S. sports history When did the Buss family purchase the Lakers? Jerry Buss purchased the Lakers in 1979, acquiring the franchise after agreeing to a deal with former owner Jack Kent Cooke. Buss earned his fortune via real estate investments. Buss was a prolific speculator, making millions leasing and selling properties across Arizona, California and Nevada. He turned a $6,000 down payment and $100,000 loan on a 14-unit rental apartment in Los Angeles into a $350 million entity by the time he lodged an offer to Cooke. In addition to the Lakers, Buss also acquired the NHL's Kings as well The Forum, the site of the Lakers and Kings' games. Buss also parted ways with the Chrysler Building and other properties as part of the transaction. MORE: What LeBron James has said about his NBA future How much did the Buss family purchase the Lakers for? Jerry Buss spent $67.5 million to acquire Cooke's crown jewel franchise. It was a princely sum for a professional sports franchise at the time. Interestingly, the Lakers made up quite a small portion of that price tag. The Los Angeles Times reported that the Lakers' portion of the sale only accounted for $16 million of the transaction. The vast majority of the cost came from The Forum, which was valued at $33.5 million at the time. The Kings cost Jerry Buss $8 million. The remaining $10 million stemmed from the purchase of Cooke's ranch in California. All told, that $67.5 million figure is $310,998,518.77 when adjusted for inflation, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. That's an eye-watering figure, for sure, although it sits comfortably before the billion-dollar totals shelled out by owners to acquire NBA franchises in recent years. MORE:Why 76ers, Warriors could be fits for Ben Simmons as free agent How much did the Buss family sell Lakers for? The Buss family sold the majority stake of the Lakers to Walter, a member of Los Angeles' ownership group, for $10 billion in the summer of 2025. The NBA's board of governors approved the sale in October, with each sibling taking home about $500 million. Walter, who joined the ownership group in 2021, was granted first right of refusal on a majority stake in the team, according to Charania. That $10 billion price tag served as the record for the largest sale in professional sports history before Walter sold his stake to Iger and Kushner this summer. MORE: Why Jeanie Buss sold the Lakers Who bought the Lakers? Walter was the beneficiary of the Buss family's initial sale. He would surrender his stake in the franchise with a sale to Iger and Kushner about one year later. Facing a federal investigation for alleged tax fraud, Walter — who accumulated his wealth via the insurance industry — sold his rights to Los Angeles to Iger and Kushner. Iger was Disney's CEO until March 2026, while Kushner founded venture capital firm Thrive Capital and serves as the vice chairman of Oscar Health, a for-profit health insurance company that boasted revenue of $4.88 billion in Q2. Their net worths are valued at $600 million and $5.2 billion, respectively, according to Celebrity Net Worth and Forbes.