The Los Angeles Lakers are one of the most iconic franchises in all of sports, but even the most storied organizations can hit turbulence behind the scenes. That turbulence came to light in 2025 when the Buss family-longtime stewards of the purple and gold-sold the team to billionaire Mark Walter in a blockbuster $10 billion deal. Now, new details about that sale are raising serious questions about how it all went down, and what it could mean for the Lakers moving forward.
Let’s start with the basics: Joey and Jesse Buss, two of the younger siblings in the Buss family, were initially exploring a minority sale. The idea was to bring in some outside capital while keeping the team under family control, offering financial relief to older siblings without giving up the reins. But what was supposed to be a strategic move quickly snowballed into something much bigger-and more divisive.
In June 2025, the siblings were presented with an offer from Mark Walter to buy roughly half of the family’s ownership stake, valuing the franchise at a staggering $10 billion. The offer was put to a vote and passed unanimously.
But here’s where things started to unravel: according to reports, some family members felt blindsided by how fast the deal was pushed through. The team wasn’t shopped around to test the market, and that lack of due diligence left some siblings frustrated and feeling left out of the loop.
Adding fuel to the fire were reports of sizable bonuses-totaling around $114 million-paid out to several longtime members of Jeanie Buss’s inner circle. Even if those payouts were above board, the optics weren’t great. The lack of transparency surrounding those bonuses only deepened existing tensions within the family.
Then came the fallout. Not long after the sale was finalized, multiple Buss siblings were removed from their roles within the organization.
Jeanie Buss, the face of Lakers ownership for over a decade, was left as the only family member still directly involved with the team. That’s a seismic shift, and not just from a sentimental standpoint-it has real implications for how the Lakers are perceived around the league.
In the NBA, perception matters. Star players, top-tier executives, and business partners all pay close attention to how franchises handle their internal affairs.
When ownership appears fractured or trust is broken, it can ripple through every level of the organization. And when that drama spills into the public eye, as it has here, it’s not something that can be easily swept under the rug.
Now, to be clear, we’re not privy to every detail behind closed doors. But if trust within the Lakers' ownership structure has truly eroded, that’s more than just a family issue-it’s a business problem.
Every major decision, from blockbuster trades to free-agent pitches to front-office hires, relies on a belief that the leadership is united and transparent. When that unity is in question, it makes navigating those decisions that much harder.
The sale itself is already in the books. That chapter is closed.
But the way it played out-and the internal fractures it exposed-could have lingering effects. The Lakers’ brand is strong, no doubt.
It’s one of the most powerful in sports. But even the strongest brands can be tested by instability at the top.
As the franchise moves into this new era under Mark Walter’s ownership, the spotlight will remain fixed on how the Lakers manage their internal dynamics. Because in the NBA, what happens off the court can be just as impactful as what happens on it.