Jeanie Buss and her lawyer push back on report about selling remaining stake in Lakers

Jeanie Buss, the longtime governor and face of the Los Angeles Lakers’ basketball operations, is disputing a report that the Buss family has agreed to move on from its ownership of the franchise. The controversy centers on a claim that the family had voted and planned to sell its remaining 17.8% stake in the Lakers, effectively ending the Buss family’s involvement in a team they have owned since 1979.

According to the report published by Yahoo Sports, the proposed sale would involve incoming ownership tied to Joshua Kushner and Bob Iger. The deal, as described, would have major corporate and governance implications because it would remove the Buss family from the ownership structure that has guided the franchise’s decisions for decades.

The same report frames the potential transition as an “end of an era” for the Lakers, with the franchise’s ownership history dating back to the Buss family’s acquisition in 1979. Under NBA governance rules described in the coverage, Jeanie Buss would have to step down as governor if the Buss family no longer held the minimum ownership interest required for that position. The report characterizes that ownership threshold as at least 15%, which would be difficult to maintain if the family’s remaining stake were sold.

Buss and her lawyer push back on the notion that such a sale is moving forward on the timetable or terms described. The coverage indicates Jeanie Buss wants to remain as governor, rather than accept a complete transfer of the family’s stake. In practical terms, that means the dispute is not only about whether ownership is changing, but also about who retains the authority associated with the governor role, including how the franchise is directed at the ownership level.

It is also a reminder that ownership transitions in the NBA can be as complex as the basketball side. Even when transactions are discussed publicly, details like voting outcomes inside a family group, regulatory approvals, and the structure of any ownership entity can determine whether a reported plan becomes reality.

For Lakers fans, the most immediate question is what happens to day-to-day decision-making if the ownership outcome is uncertain or contested. Ownership shifts can influence everything from executive leadership stability to how aggressively the franchise pursues roster moves, even though basketball outcomes still depend heavily on the general manager and coaching staff. For now, Buss’s statement posture suggests she intends to contest the premise that her tenure as governor is headed toward an abrupt end.

The next watch items are straightforward: whether any formal ownership paperwork or league filings match what was reported, and whether the NBA, the team, or representatives of the parties involved address the governance question directly. Until then, the dispute remains centered on the gap between a reported plan to sell the final Buss stake and Buss’s insistence that she is not moving toward that outcome.