Metta Sandiford-Artest says he tried to get into the Los Angeles Lakers ownership picture when Mark Walter bought the team, but the door never opened for him.
In a recent exclusive interview with The California Post’s Melissa Rohlin, the former Lakers forward said he moved quickly after the sale and made a push to buy a $100 million stake. Artest, who helped the Lakers win the 2010 NBA title, said he saw the chance as both a personal and practical opportunity.
“I sent the email the next day. I tried to get in at $100 [million], and they didn’t let me in.
But I wish he had let me in. That would’ve been great to have a former Laker as an owner, especially with the Buss family gone.
It would’ve been great to have a Laker, a champion like Metta World Peace.”
Artest made clear that the appeal wasn’t just sentimental. He said he believed the franchise’s value was headed much higher and wanted to buy in for 1%.
“Once it sold, the next day I tried to buy in for 1%,” Artest commented. “I knew it was going to [go up in value].
I knew it. I said the Lakers are going to be valued at $14 [billion].
I thought it was going to be a $14 billion value within like 18 months.”
When the answer came back, it was no.
“They didn’t respond, and then they were like, ‘No,'” he added. “The reason why I tried to is I knew the value was going to go up, so I missed out.
I was kind of bummed about it. You have a former player who wants to put in $100 [million].”
Walter’s purchase ended the Buss family’s run as Lakers owners, and Artest said he saw his own bid as a way to keep some of that old connection alive through someone who had won with the franchise. Even so, he still described the latest sale as a move that could lift the team further.
This wasn’t the first time Artest says his business instincts pointed him in the right direction. After retiring in 2017, he tried to invest in Ice Cube’s BIG3 league in 2018, only to be turned away there too. Artest later said the league’s value rose enough that his return could have been sevenfold.
For now, his chance to join the Lakers as an owner is gone. And with the team’s latest sale still drawing attention, the next chapter remains unsettled.
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