The Buss family owns a 17.8% stake in the Los Angeles Lakers through a family trust shared among Jerry Buss's six children [1, 2, 3, 4]. Bob Iger and Josh Kushner recently bought majority ownership of the Lakers from Mark Walter for $12.5 billion, a record valuation for an NBA franchise [1, 2, 5, 6, 4, 7]. The Buss family intends to sell their remaining 17.8% stake to Iger and Kushner as part of the ongoing ownership transition [1, 8, 2, 3, 6, 4, 7, 9].
Jeanie Buss, who has served as the Lakers’ controlling owner and NBA governor since 2013 after her father’s death, opposes the sale of the remaining shares [1, 2, 5, 4, 10]. NBA rules require a controlling owner or governor to own at least 15% of a franchise. Selling the entire remaining Buss stake would cause Jeanie to lose her minimum 15% ownership, thus relinquishing her governor role [1, 2, 3, 4, 10].
Jeanie claims a 2017 court order mandates approval from all three co-trustees of the family trust—Jeanie, Janie, and Joey—for any sale of the stake. Her attorney Adam Streisand sent a letter to her five siblings declaring any vote to sell the 17.8% shares without Jeanie’s consent is void and breaches fiduciary duty [1, 5, 11, 10]. Streisand said, "No sale of the JAB Trust's 17.8% ownership interest in the Los Angeles Lakers, Inc. can be effectuated without approval by the current co-trustees... Any attempt to do otherwise ... would constitute a breach of trust, breach of fiduciary duty and be in contempt of court" [5].
The other five Buss siblings—Jim, Johnny, Janie, Joey, and Jesse—support proceeding with the sale, arguing they remain unified in the decision despite Jeanie’s opposition [3, 9]. They invoked a tag-along provision from the prior Walter sale that requires at least four of six siblings’ approval for such a transaction, and five have voted to sell their remaining shares to Iger and Kushner [4, 7, 9]. The siblings said, "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. 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" [1]. They added their focus remains on the Lakers, fans, and the greater Los Angeles community [9].
Mark Walter had purchased majority ownership from the Buss family for $10 billion 14 months ago in June 2025 [2, 6, 4, 7]. The NBA approved Walter as majority owner in October 2025 while Jeanie kept her governor role [6, 4]. The subsequent sale to Iger and Kushner closed between August 10 and 14, 2026, and still requires NBA approval [1, 2, 5, 6, 4, 7]. Iger commented that the plan was for Buss to remain governor but that "if things change, they'll change" [6].
The family dispute centers on whether Jeanie’s veto can block the sale under the trust’s rules, while the other siblings assert their majority vote governs [1, 8, 2, 5, 3, 11, 10, 9]. The next step is awaiting the NBA’s decision on approving the transfer of remaining shares from the Buss family trust to Iger and Kushner.
