Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The Buss family will sell its 17.8% stake in the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers to a group led by former Disney chief executive Bob Iger that purchased majority ownership, according to multiple reports Monday. The Athletic, ESPN, USA Today and other Los Angeles outlets revealed the move, which came after Iger and Joshua Kushner paid a record $12.5 billion for the team last week from prior majority owner Mark Walter.
“We have decided as a family to sell the remaining Buss Family Trust shares to the Bob Iger group as part of the ongoing transaction,” the family said in a statement. “We love the Lakers, Laker fans and will continue to support Los Angeles; but it is time to use this opportunity to move on and exit gracefully while we still can.”
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Jeanie Buss, who was in the trust along with her five siblings, had been the Lakers’ NBA governor since 2013, taking over after the death of her father, Jerry Buss. The Buss family sold a majority stake in the Lakers to Walter last year for $10 billion, what was then the record for largest sale of a US sports team.
Iger and Kushner would own about 83% of the Lakers provided the deal is approved by NBA club owners, a decision expected at an NBA board of governors meeting next month in New York.
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