Who Owns the Lakers? Mark Walter, a Pending $12.5 Billion Sale and the Buss Family

So the honest answer has two parts: Walter owns the Lakers today, and Iger and Kushner are lined up to own them next. The Buss family, which ran the team from 1979, is split over whether to sell its last shares.

Who owns the Lakers right now?

Walter's exact percentage has not been published. If the Buss shares are added to Walter's, Iger and Kushner would own about 83% of the team, TheWrap reported on August 17, 2026, which implies Walter's own stake is roughly 65%.

The pending sale to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner

On August 12, 2026, Iger and Kushner confirmed they had agreed to buy the Lakers from Walter. NBC News and ESPN put the price at $12.5 billion, a record for an American sports team. In a joint statement they said they were "deeply honored for the opportunity to become stewards of the Los Angeles Lakers." Walter said owning the team "has been one of the great honors of my life."

• Bob Iger stepped down as Disney CEO in March 2026 and rejoined Thrive Capital, ABC News reported.
• Josh Kushner founded Thrive Capital and co-founded Oscar Health. He holds a small stake in the Miami Heat that he would have to give up.

The sale needs a yes vote from at least 23 of the 30 NBA teams. Sources told Sports Business Journal it would not be voted on at the September 2026 Board of Governors meeting, Lakers Nation reported on September 14. I found no approval as of October 25, 2026, so Walter is still the owner of record.

Walter sold after less than a year in control. In the same August 12, 2026 report, NBC News noted multiple reports that federal prosecutors in Manhattan and the SEC were investigating Walter and Guggenheim Partners. NBC did not connect the investigations to the sale, and neither the buyers nor Walter did either.

Does Jeanie Buss still own the Lakers?

She owns part of them and still runs them as governor, but control passed to Walter in October 2025. What happens next is in dispute.

• On August 17, 2026, the Buss family said it would sell its remaining shares to Iger and Kushner under a tag-along right in the Walter deal. Four of Jerry Buss's six children had to agree, and TheWrap reported the trust got those votes.
• Jeanie Buss is contesting it. Her lawyer wrote that "No sale of the JAB Trust's 17.8% ownership interest" can go ahead without approval by the co-trustees, NBC News reported. A court hearing is scheduled for December 2026.
• If the family shares are sold, she would lose the governor role, because the NBA requires a governor to hold at least 15% of the team.

Every controlling owner of the Lakers

Sources: the Lakers' Wikipedia ownership history, citing the Detroit Free Press (1947) and Roland Lazenby's team history; The New York Times, 2013; NBA.com, 2025; NBC News, 2026.

Lakers ownership timeline

1. 1947

   Ben Berger and Morris Chalfen buy the Detroit Gems and move them to Minneapolis as the Lakers

   $15,000Source: Detroit Free Press, 1947

2. 1957

   Bob Short's group of 117 Minnesota investors buys the team

   $150,000Source: Lakers ownership history

3. 1960

   Short moves the Lakers to Los Angeles

   Source: Lakers ownership history

4. 1965

   Jack Kent Cooke buys the team from Short

   $5.175 millionSource: Lakers ownership history

5. 1979

   Jerry Buss buys the Lakers, the Forum and the Kings from Cooke

   $67.5 million for the packageSource: The New York Times, 2013

6. 1998

   Philip Anschutz and Ed Roski Jr. buy 25%

   Not disclosedSource: Los Angeles Times, 1998

7. 2013

   Jerry Buss dies; Jeanie Buss becomes controlling owner and governor

   Source: The New York Times, 2013

8. 2021

   Anschutz sells his roughly 27% stake to Mark Walter and Todd Boehly

   About $5 billion team valueSource: Los Angeles Times, June 26, 2021

9. 2025

   Buss family sells control to Walter; NBA approves on October 30

   $10 billion team valueSource: NBA.com, October 30, 2025

10. 2026

    Walter agrees on August 12 to sell to Iger and Kushner; NBA approval pending as of October 25

    $12.5 billion, reportedSource: NBC News, August 12, 2026

From Cooke's $5.175 million in 1965 to Walter's $10 billion in 2025, the team's value rose about 1,900-fold in 60 years. The Iger and Kushner price would add another 25% in about 10 months.

Who runs the Lakers day to day?

Jeanie Buss is governor and represents the team at the NBA. Rob Pelinka runs basketball operations as president and general manager. Under the Walter deal, the NBA said Jeanie Buss "will remain the team's Governor and an active and engaged member of our league." Whether that lasts depends on the Iger and Kushner approval and the family court case.

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