Shockwaves were sent throughout the NBA last week when it was reported that Mark Walter was selling his majority shares of the Los Angeles Lakers to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner for a record $12.5 billion.
But then another bombshell came out when it was announced that the Buss family had also agreed to share their remaining shares with Iger and Kushner.
However, that move could ultimately be challenged as Lakers governor Jeanie Buss revealed her intention to void the sale, paving the way for a potentially messy legal battle with her siblings.
Regardless of how that situation plays out, Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal understands why the Buss family would want to sell their remaining shares in the franchise.
“I have great admiration for the Buss family,” O’Neal said during a recent appearance on SportsCenter. “Learned a lot of business acumen from watching them. And I can remember how much Mr. Buss paid for the team. So if the rumors are true on how much they sold it for, I think it was a monumental business move.
“It will be different not knowing that the Buss family is there with the Lakers, but I want to wish them well, want to congratulate them. Thank you for the great memories that they gave me. But from a business standpoint, for what they purchased it for to what they’re selling it for, you get the golf clap.”
If it ultimately turns out that Jeanie’s legal challenge of the sale does not work out, one alternative for Jeanie to try and remain the Lakers’ governor is to buy her way back in to 15% of the team. It’s unclear exactly how that would happen, but it’s a scenario she is reportedly open to.
Shams Charania stands by Lakers reporting
Since it was reported that the Buss family intends to sell their remaining shares in the Lakers, Jeanie Buss released a statement through her lawyers that, among other things, called out ESPN’s Shams Charania for false reporting.
The legalese of the vote and sale will be hotly contested over the next few months, but Charania made sure to clear his name separately.
“I have to make it clear, I fully stand by my reporting,” Charania said on the Pat McAfee Show on ESPN. “What I reported was that there was a majority vote, at least four of six necessary to be able to close a transfer as far as the tag-along provision. And I had a statement from the Buss family trust. The first line of the statement from the lawyer said that I ‘reported the six Buss siblings voted to sell.’ That key sentence right there is inaccurate, and so I fully stand by my reporting, and I’ve handled every story with care, including stories with the Lakers as that statement continues on.
“So, that’s where all of this is at, and so only the siblings, the lawyers involved have access to what the trust actually says. If five siblings believe they have the majority vote, that they have the 5-1 majority votes to go along with the tag-along provision. And just think about it. A year ago, Jeanie Buss pushed the sale for $10 billion to Mark Walter. And now, a year later, Mark Walter — who is under two federal investigations — has sold, within a multi-day span, to Josh Kushner and Bob Iger at $12.5 billion. And so the family trust believes it’s now time to cleanly exit, and in their words, gracefully exit. But this is now setting up to be a potential legal battle in the courts between one sibling — the controlling governor as of right now — and her five siblings.”
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