The Buss family has owned the Los Angeles Lakers since Dr. Jerry Buss purchased the team in 1979, but that is about to change as earlier this year they announced they will be selling the team to Mark Walter, the CEO and chairman of TWG Global who also owns the L.A. Dodgers.
Walter purchased the team for a $10 billion valuation, which is a record for all professional sports franchises.
Despite the majority sale though, Jeanie Buss will remain in her role as governor for the foreseeable future. Joey Buss (alternate governor and vice president of research and development) and Jesse Buss (assistant general manager) are also expected to remain in their roles, but according to Dave McMenamin and Shams Charania of ESPN, they are launching a new sports acquisition business:
Two of the Buss family brothers are venturing into professional sports beyond the Los Angeles Lakers.
Joey Buss, the Lakers’ alternate governor and vice president of research and development, and Jesse Buss, the team’s assistant general manager, are launching Buss Sports Capital. The new business is an investment firm aimed at identifying acquisitions and partnerships across the global sports landscape.
Joey spoke about this new venture and what he and Jesse plan to do with it:
“Our vision is to really go after strategic investments and good partners — specifically sports-related investments,” Joey Buss told ESPN. “Buss Sports Capital is not going to compete with our interests in the Lakers or the NBA. This is our first step to where the future of sports is going to lead us. It is exciting to see what growth opportunities exist — particularly opportunities that we can add value to, given our skill sets.”
Considering they are no longer majority owners of the Lakers, Jesse is excited to dive into this new project with his brother:
“I look forward to working with my brother, Joey, for the next 50 years and hopefully this is something that can live through our children,” Jesse Buss told ESPN. “That’s what our dad would have wanted.”
Joey and Jesse have done an outstanding job in various roles in the Lakers front office over the last decade and while that is expected to continue, they are clearly passionate about Buss Sports Capital.
Jeanie Buss believes Luka Doncic is ideal global representative of Lakers
The Buss family is leaving the Lakers in good hands after acquiring Luka Doncic last February. Jeanie Buss traveled to Poland this summer to support Doncic and his native Slovenia in EuroBasket, and she came away believing the 26-year-old is the ideal global representative of the Lakers for years to come.
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