Despite transitioning out of her role as a majority owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, Jeanie Buss will still apparently be finishing out the decade as the team’s lead decision-maker.
Buss will remain as the Lakers’ governor for at least the next five seasons, Sam Amick of The Athletic reported on Wednesday. The stipulation comes as a part of the Buss family’s official agreement with Mark Walter, who is set to become the Lakers’ new majority owner.
Last month, Buss and her siblings made the stunning decision to sell their majority stake in the franchise to Walter, the billionaire CEO of Guggenheim Partners who already serves as the primary owner and chairman of MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers. The two sides agreed on a deal at a record-shattering $10 billion valuation of the franchise.
Dr. Jerry Buss, the late Buss family patriarch, purchased the Lakers back in 1979 for a sum of $67.5 million. When he died in Feb. 2013 at the age of 80, ownership of the Lakers passed along to his six children in equal shares via a trust. Now in 2025, the six children have unanimously decided to sell their controlling stake in the team.
As for Jeanie specifically, she is the one who was appointed by her father to serve as the Lakers’ governor and team representative in NBA Board of Governors meetings upon his death. Though Jeanie had some ugly power disputes with her siblings in years past, she has since solidified her position as the team’s undisputed lead decision-maker.
Five more seasons in charge (at the very least) will take Jeanie through the 2029-30 NBA season. Jeanie’s decisions have not always been popular with the Lakers fanbase, but those hoping to wait out her tenure as the head honcho of the team will have to keep on waiting for a while longer.
