In what feels like a fifth season of Succession, the five Buss family members who want to sell their remaining 17.8% stake in the Lakers — over the strenuous objections of Jeanie Buss, who was serving as team governor — released a statement Tuesday saying they were unified in their goals.
That statement:
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“The Los Angeles Lakers have never been just a basketball team. They have been one of the greatest privileges of our lives.
“Our focus has always been on what we believe is best for the Lakers, the fans who have supported this franchise for generations and the greater Los Angeles community.
“Johnny, Jimmy, Janie, Joey and Jesse have made the decision to sell the family’s remaining stake, and we remain united in that decision. We intend to move forward thoughtfully, respectfully and through the appropriate process.
“We have tremendous respect for Bob Iger and Josh Kushner and believe they understand what the Lakers represent to Los Angeles and our incredibly loyal fan base. We are confident they will honor everything this franchise stands for while building upon the foundation our father created.”
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Within hours of the first report that the five Buss siblings wanted to sell the remaining family shares, Jeanie Buss and her attorney, Adam Streisand, sent a strongly worded letter to the other siblings’ attorney saying that selling the shares would be “a breach of trust” and violate court orders. From that letter:
“[No selling of the] 17.8% ownership interest in the Los Angeles Lakers, Inc. can be effectuated without approval by the current co-trustees, i.e., Jeanie, Janie and Joey Buss. The co-trustees are bound to vote the Los Angeles Lakers, Inc. shares to ensure that the minimum 15% ownership requirement is maintained in order to ensure that Jeanie Buss may remain Controlling Owner.”
And that’s really the rub — Jeanie Buss wants to stay in her role as team governor.
Like any good family drama, there is plenty of backstory here. The Buss family has owned the Lakers since Jerry Buss purchased the team in 1979, and behind the star power of names like Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, the franchise has won 11 titles and become the biggest brand in the sport. When Jerry passed, it was Jeanie as team governor (the controlling owner who was the liaison with the league), Jimmy was put in charge of the basketball side, with Joey and Jesse as part of the front office (Joey and Jesse were respected around the league for their work, particularly with the draft). Jimmy, however, struggled in the GM role and was eventually forced out by Jeanie.
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It reportedly was Jeanie who drove the initial sale of the Lakers to Mark Walters for what was then a stunning $10 million. The numbers were too big to ignore, and the point had come where the Buss family — as much as the Lakers drove revenue — could not compete with the deep-pocketed billionaire owners buying up teams. After the sale, Joey and Jesse were let go as the front office was restructured.
Jeanie, however, had a five-year agreement with Walter to stay on as the governor. She was around the team and still involved in its business. The other Buss family members were not.
Then came the news that shocked the league: Walter was selling the Lakers at a $12.5 billion valuation to Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner (who will have to get their money from somewhere, combined they are not worth the billions needed for this transaction).
Now, those other Buss family members want to sell while Jeanie wants to hold on to the shares. And it looks like it will be hashed out by lawyers and, potentially, judges.
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