The Los Angeles Lakers have been sold twice in the last year-plus, and both for a record amount. First, the Buss family agreed to sell their majority shares to Mark Walter for a $10 billion valuation, which was the most ever for an American professional sports team.
A year later, Walter, who also owns the L.A. Dodgers and other teams, agreed to sell the team to Josh Kushner and Bob Iger for a $12.5 billion valuation. Walter’s insurance companies are currently being investigated for financial improprieties, so he essentially flipped the Lakers to come up with needed cash.
And according to Jessica Toonkel and Mark Maurer of the Wall Street Journal, Kushner and Iger are planning for the Lakers to eventually reach a $30 billion valuation and laid out how to investors:
The buyers of the Los Angeles Lakers are telling prospective investors they expect to nearly triple the basketball team’s valuation within 10 years.
That is one of several aggressive financial projections included in an investor presentation being circulated by Thrive Capital, the investment firm helmed by Joshua Kushner, according to a copy reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
A group led by Kushner and former Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger last month struck a deal to purchase the team from finance mogul Mark Walter at a $12.5 billion valuation. In the presentation, the buyers laid out plans to expand the storied National Basketball Association franchise, including through international growth and new opportunities in local media rights.
Those moves would help boost the Lakers’ valuation to at least $30 billion in a decade, the buyer group said, assuming that TV and streaming rights double in value. More favorable assumptions for the same period would place the long-term valuation at $62 billion.
The Lakers are arguably the biggest brand in all of sports, so it makes sense for the new owners and investors to count on the organization continuing to appreciate over the years.
After the Buss family owned and operated the Lakers as a family business for 40-plus years though, it is clear that the organization is entering a new era. The focus now appears to be on maximizing profits and continuing to increase the valuation, which makes it seem like Kushner and Iger view this more as a business enterprise than a team to own for generations with the goal of winning as many championships as possible.
That oftens comes at the detriment of the fans, although it remains to be seen exactly how Kushner and Iger will run the Lakers once they get approved by the NBA’s Board of Governors.
NBA Board of Governors did not vote on Lakers sale at latest meeting
The NBA Board of Governors just met this past week, although according to reports, they did not vote on the Lakers’ sale from Walter to Kushner and Iger. That means it may be a little while longer before it gets officially approved and Kushner and Iger take over.
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