The Lakers' second ownership shock in less than a year is now echoing around the rest of the NBA.
Front Office Sports reported that people in the league's ownership class were stunned by Mark Walter's move to sell the Lakers to former Disney CEO Bob Iger and venture capital executive Josh Kushner at a $12.5 billion valuation. Walter had only recently bought a controlling stake in the franchise, making the timing the part that has people asking questions.
One source close to multiple sports owners called the situation "one of the most bizarre things" they had seen. A former NBA governor questioned why anyone would sell a premier franchise that quickly, especially without opening a wider auction process.
The surprise is not just about the Lakers changing hands. It is about what Walter's group had been doing before the sale surfaced. According to the report, the Lakers had already started reshaping both the business and basketball sides of the operation. The team hired a new president of business operations, added front-office executives, cut more than a dozen jobs, moved its G League team from South Bay to the Coachella Valley and agreed to a jersey patch deal.
Walter also owns the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the report said some Dodgers executives had been advising Lakers president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka on front-office structure. That made the franchise look like it was being rebuilt for a longer ownership run, not prepared for another handoff.
ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported the sale news, and Front Office Sports noted that she told ESPN Radio the deal came together in only the last few days. That short timeline is part of why the reaction inside ownership circles has been so sharp.
The report also raised the question of whether scrutiny of Walter's business interests played any role. Bloomberg previously reported a federal investigation tied to Walter's business practices, and Front Office Sports cited ownership sources wondering if that pressure helped trigger the sale. That remains unconfirmed. Walter did not give a specific reason for selling in the statement provided to ESPN.
Walter's wider sports portfolio adds to the intrigue. Along with the Dodgers and Lakers, his TWG Global holding company has been tied to stakes in the Los Angeles Sparks, Chelsea F.C., the Professional Women's Hockey League and multiple auto racing teams. That is why the Lakers move is being read beyond one franchise transaction.
What is clear is the scale. A $12.5 billion valuation would place the Lakers at the top of the U.S. sports franchise market and hand one of the NBA's flagship teams to a group led by Iger and Kushner. The deal still needs approval from the NBA Board of Governors, which is scheduled to meet in September.
Until then, the Lakers are in a strange holding pattern: a glamour franchise, a record valuation, a sudden seller and a buyer group that arrived before the rest of the owner class seemed to know the team was truly available.
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