The Los Angeles Lakers have been sold to the highest bidder. Well, maybe the only bidder. But they've been sold nonetheless, according to Shams Charania of ESPN, as the Buss family has sold its majority stake of the Lakers to Mark Walter — who also owns the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Yes, the freewheeling, money-spending, big-splash making Dodgers now share an owner with the Lakers. So, if you thought the Lakers had it easy before, they're now owned by a man who is hellbent on adding every good player to the team he already owned before this.
Lovely. (Yes, this is laced with sarcasm, as I am but a humble fan of a small-market team who will never have these luxuries.)
BREAKING: The Buss family is entering an agreement to sell majority ownership of the Los Angeles Lakers to Mark Walter, the CEO and chairman of diversified holding company TWG Global, sources tell ESPN. Jeanie Buss will continue to serve in her role as Governor after the sale. pic.twitter.com/1Da6LDD7TJ
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 18, 2025
How much did the Buss family sell the Lakers for?
Jerry Buss bought the Lakers in 1979 for $67 million, and now, in 2025, his family has sold the franchise for approximately $10 billion. Yes... billion. With a B. That's 10,000 millions, for those keeping track at home. An almost unfathomable amount of money.
Granted, Walter won't be able to run the Lakers how he runs the Dodgers. The NBA has a salary cap, and with the new CBA including penalties for teams that spend into the second apron, there is still a ceiling on what Walter will be able to do with LA's roster and spending abilities.
Still — I feel confident saying Walter will be willing to pay the luxury tax, and maybe even cross over into the second apron, to make the Lakers competitive year over year. You don't spend $10 billion to then sit on your hands. Well, most of us don't spend $10 billion in general. Or ever make that much in our lives.
How will the sale of the Lakers impact LeBron James and Luka Dončić?
Probably not a ton. Walter takes over a team that doesn't have a ton of room to operate, so my guess is that he kind of waits until LeBron retires (if LeBron retires) to make his impact felt as the team's owner. The franchise doesn't have a ton of picks to play with (only four first-rounders until 2031) and with LeBron and Luka on the roster, there's not much cap flexibility, either. But again — if you buy something for $10 billion, you're probably planning on being around a while.