Jeanie Buss, controlling owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, has filed a petition with the Los Angeles County Superior Court to block her five siblings from selling the family’s share of the team.
The potential sale would end Buss’ ability to run the franchise as she has since her father died in 2013.
Advertisement
The petition is composed not strictly by legal arguments to block her five siblings’ vote to sell the family’s 17.8% stake in the team. It’s also an attack on their efforts to do so.
She accuses them of “devious behavior” and for trying to carry out a “scheme” to circumvent her and violate the family trust.
Jeanie Buss also says three of her siblings – Jim, Johnny and Jesse – should be held in contempt of court and that her two other siblings, Joey and Janie, should show cause why they should not be held in contempt of court.
A longtime family feud resurfaced Aug. 12 after Mark Walter, controlling owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, agreed to sell the Lakers to venture capitalist Josh Kushner and former Disney CEO Bob Iger at a $12.5 billion valuation, the most ever paid for a U.S. professional sports franchise.
Advertisement
Attorney Adam Streisand, who represents Jeanie Buss, said in a declaration filed with the court that on Aug. 17 ESPN reported all six Buss siblings had voted to sell the team and Jeanie Buss was “out” as controlling owner. The report was considered part of the “scheme,” according to the petition.
On Aug. 18, ESPN published a story reporting five of the siblings, with the exception of Jeanie, were united in their decision to sell the team. That would have a direct impact on her role with the Lakers.
The family must own at least 15% of the team for Jeanie Buss to remain controlling owner.
1 / 8
All-time Los Angeles Lakers legends who shaped the game
Jerry West (#44) played 14 seasons from 1960-1974 with the Lakers and was a force who never left the NBA once he got there, according to USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt. The Hall of Famer, pictured here in action against the Cincinnati Royals, was remembered for his imprint as a shooting guard and builder of teams. His impact remains visible in today’s NBA and he went on to touch generations of teams and players, including LeBron James, who talked to West about winning and losing.
(Malcolm Emmons, IMAGN IMAGES)
1 / 8
All-time Los Angeles Lakers legends who shaped the game
Jerry West (#44) played 14 seasons from 1960-1974 with the Lakers and was a force who never left the NBA once he got there, according to USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt. The Hall of Famer, pictured here in action against the Cincinnati Royals, was remembered for his imprint as a shooting guard and builder of teams. His impact remains visible in today’s NBA and he went on to touch generations of teams and players, including LeBron James, who talked to West about winning and losing.
(Malcolm Emmons, IMAGN IMAGES)
2 / 8
All-time Los Angeles Lakers legends who shaped the game
The Lakers often believed that Elgin Baylor (#22) remained under appreciated during his 14-year NBA career with the franchise in Minneapolis and Los Angeles. Baylor, pictured Feb. 17, 1970, in a game against the New York Knicks, is among six Lakers luminaries to have a statue outside of Staples Center, and is also among 10 Lakers players to have their jersey retired. Baylor entered the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame after winning an NBA championship (1972), posted an NBA Finals record 61 points in Game 5 of the 1961 NBA Finals against Boston, winning the league’s rookie of the year award (1959) and making 11 All-Star appearances.
(Manny Rubio, Imagn Images)
3 / 8
All-time Los Angeles Lakers legends who shaped the game
Los Angeles Lakers center #13 Wilt Chamberlain scored 31,419 points, averaging 30.1 ppg, during 1,045 games over a 16-year Hall of Fame career. Chamberlain led the NBA in scoring seven straight years, averaged 50.4 points per game in 1962 and scored a record 100 points in a single game on March 2, 1962 against the New York Knicks in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The NBA didn’t televise the game and less than 5,000 people got to witness the iconic moment. HoopsHype ranked the top 80 players in NBA history and Chamberlain came in ranked No. 6 on the list, according to Sixers Wire.
(Malcolm Emmons, IMAGN IMAGES)
4 / 8
All-time Los Angeles Lakers legends who shaped the game
Los Angeles Lakers center #33 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, pictured in action during the 1981-82 season in Indianapolis, is one of the greatest basketball players in history – from his days as a prep star in New York City at Power Memorial Academy to his three NCAA championships and 88-2 record at UCLA and his six NBA championships and six MVPs with the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers. He averaged at least 21 points in his first 17 seasons, averaged at least 12 rebounds in his first 10 seasons and shot at least 50% from the field.
(Malcolm Emmons, IMAGN IMAGES)
5 / 8
All-time Los Angeles Lakers legends who shaped the game
Los Angeles Lakers guard Magic Johnson (32) in action against the Detroit Pistons during the 1988 NBA Finals at the Silverdome. Magic was the face of the Lakers and the NBA during much of the 1980s when he won five NBA titles and led the “Showtime” teams in legendary showdowns with Larry Bird and the Celtics. The Hall of Famer was a three-time NBA MVP and is regarded as one of the best point guards ever to play the game.
(IMAGN IMAGES)
6 / 8
All-time Los Angeles Lakers legends who shaped the game
Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant soars to the basket against Sacramento Kings’s Mike Bibby during Game 4 of the NBA Western Conference finals in Los Angeles, May 26, 2002. Kobe spent all 20 years of his legendary career with the Lakers, won five championships, and is the fourth-leading scorer in NBA history. One of the fiercest competitors to play the game, Kobe could do it all. His legend in Lakers Nation will live on forever.
(Adrees Latif, REUTERS)
7 / 8
All-time Los Angeles Lakers legends who shaped the game
Los Angeles Lakers forward James Worthy celebrates his team’s series-clinching victory over the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 6 of the NBA Western Conference Finals at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, Calif. on May 30, 1991. James Worthy was a cornerstone of the Los Angeles Lakers’ “Showtime” era, helping the franchise win three NBA championships in the 1980s. Known for his clutch performances and smooth all-around game, the Hall of Famer remains one of the most celebrated players in Lakers history.
(Sam Mircovich, REUTERS)
8 / 8
All-time Los Angeles Lakers legends who shaped the game
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) shoots the ball against Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. (10) and guard Amen Thompson (1) in the second half during game one of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. LeBron James cemented his legacy in Los Angeles, leading the Lakers to the 2020 NBA championship and continuing to be one of the league’s most influential stars. Even in the later stages of his career, James remains a central figure for the franchise, adding to a résumé that already ranks among the greatest, if not the greatest in basketball history.
(Kirby Lee, IMAGN IMAGES)
Tale of finances
The matter dates back to 1979, when Jerry Buss purchased the Lakers for $67.5 million and turned the team into one of the most storied franchises in sports. Upon his death in 2013, all six of his children were given equal shares of his stake in the team and Jeanie was named his successor.
Advertisement
In 2017, Jeanie Buss filed a lawsuit accusing two of her brothers, Jim and Johnny, of trying to oust her as controlling owner. A court order affirmed she was the controlling owner and directed the family co-trustee to take “all actions reasonably available” to ensure that continued. That year, Jeanie fired Jim Buss as the team’s head of basketball operations
In June 2025, the Buss family agreed to sell the majority of the Lakers to Walter on a valuation of $10 billion, and the sale took into account Jeanie Buss’ position with the team.
According to Jeanie Buss’ petition, “Specifically, the co-trustees enabled each beneficiary to receive substantial wealth while preserving the Buss family’s ownership interest in the Lakers above the 15% threshold required for Jeanie to remain Controlling Owner, and while securing a contractual commitment from the new owner to maintain Jeanie as Controlling Owner for at least five years, through October 30, 2030.”
Jeanie Buss’ track record
The Lakers have won 17 NBA championships, more than any team but the Boston Celtics, who have won 18.
Advertisement
But since Jerry Buss died in 2013, the Lakers have won just one championship. And after his death, the Lakers failed to make the playoffs for six consecutive seasons.
There is no mention of the team’s struggles in a section of the petition outlining Jeanie Buss’ successes as controlling owner.
The petition states, “During her tenure, among other of her extraordinary achievements, she overhauled the front office, signed LeBron James, traded for Anthony Davis, and delivered the 2020 Championship, becoming the first female Controlling Owner to win an NBA title, before obtaining Luka Dončić and while growing the Lakers to a record valuation for an NBA franchise.”
The $12.5 billion Kushner and Iger have agreed to pay for the team reflects the massive growth of the team’s value – from their father’s purchase of $67.5 million, not to mention a growth of 25% in about a year.
Advertisement
According to the petition, two of the Lakers’ minority owners, Patrick Soon-Shiong and Ed Roski Jr., “have made the determination, as has Jeanie, that the value of Lakers stock will continue to increase over the value of the stock in the current proposed offer…and, for that reason, they have no intent to sell their Lakers stock at this time.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lakers legal saga continues: Jeanie Buss accuses siblings of ‘devious behavior’ in petition
