Jeanie Buss Fights Lakers Stake Sale That Could Cost Her the Governor Chair
Five Buss siblings want to sell the family's 17.8% Lakers stake to Iger and Kushner. Jeanie says a 2017 court order makes the vote void.
Pelinka's job security hinges on whether Jeanie keeps the governor seat.
- Buss family holds a 17.8% Lakers stake
- Iger/Kushner bought majority at $12.5B valuation
- NBA requires 15% ownership to be governor
- Family has owned Lakers since 1979 — 47 years
- 5 of 6 Buss siblings voted to sell
The Lakers' ownership drama just went nuclear. Jeanie Buss is contesting her own family's plan to sell its remaining 17.8% stake to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner — the same duo that bought a majority share from Mark Walter last week in a $12.5 billion deal. Her five siblings all reportedly want out. Jeanie does not, and she's got a lawyer arguing the whole thing is illegal.
In a letter obtained by CNBC, Jeanie's attorney Adam Streisand wrote that any vote suggesting the family is selling would be void. His argument leans on a 2017 court order: the trust's co-trustees — Jeanie, Janie and Joey — are bound to keep the family at a minimum 15% stake so Jeanie can stay on as Controlling Owner. That 15% number is the whole ballgame, because NBA rules require someone to own at least 15% of a team to serve as its governor.
The siblings see it differently. When Walter sold his majority to Iger and Kushner, the deal carried a tag-along clause the other five Bussies executed, arguing it lets them dump their shares at the same price Walter got. They voted unanimously to do exactly that, framing it in a public statement as a chance to exit gracefully while they still can. Jeanie's camp counters that the 2017 order blocks any sale without her consent.
Why It Matters On The Court
A team's governor holds final say on the big decisions — including who runs basketball operations. Right now that's Rob Pelinka, a longtime member of Jeanie's inner circle who looked set to survive the Walter transition with reinforcements underneath him, including new assistant GM Rohan Ramadas. If Jeanie loses the governor seat, Pelinka's protection evaporates. Iger already hedged when he took over, saying that if things change, they'll change.
This isn't the first Buss family knife fight, either. Jeanie fired Jim as head of basketball ops in 2017, Jim and Johnny tried to strip her board seat, and it took a settlement to keep her in control. Every sibling except Jeanie has been removed from a team role at some point. Now those same siblings are maneuvering to remove her from the last chair she's got.
For fantasy managers, this is a front-office story with a slow fuse — nobody's rotation changes tomorrow. But it's worth tracking. A new governor eventually means a new voice on trades, coaching and roster construction, and that ripples into every Lakers player's role and value. Watch the ownership fight closely; if Jeanie loses and Pelinka goes, the Lakers' entire basketball direction — and the fantasy outlook for the roster — is suddenly in play.
