A Couple Of Fascinating Developments From The Lakers $10 Billion Sale

Massive news has come out of the NBA, and it's not the crowning of a new champion. Rather, it's the shocking development that the Buss family agreed to sell 48% of its remaining stake in the Los Angeles Lakers to Mark Walter for $4.8 billion—a pro sports record valuation of $10 billion. In total, Walter has now paid $6.15 billion to control 75% of the team, giving each of the six Buss siblings $1.025 billion in cash and leaving them with 3% stakes worth $300 million apiece.

It's a massive deal no matter how you slice it, but there are a couple of fascinating developments brewing here. Let's start with the Buss family and why they might be selling now.

Back in 2017, ESPN featured a profile on Jeanie Buss and her family. It offered a look at how she came to power within the Lakers, with one part standing out in particular. Ramona Shelburne, who wrote the story, included a quote from Jeanie's sister Janie, who was also a controlling trustee of the Lakers.

Jeanie Buss with the Larry O'Brien Trophy celebrating the most recent NBA championship for the Lakers. (Harry How/Getty Images)

"The way the trust is set up now, if any of the six Buss kids dies, that share in the trust gets evenly divided among the surviving siblings. 'It's last man standing,' Janie says. 'If I die tomorrow, my kids benefit a little bit, but they don't get everything I'm entitled to. As we all go down, it's all going to end up in Joey's and Jesse's hands because they're the youngest.'"

Prior to this latest sale, the Busses still had a controlling majority of the team. Each sibling essentially owned 11% of the team. But when one of them died, their kids wouldn't get most of their fortune. Instead, it would be reinvested among the other siblings, down to the final living sibling receiving 66%.

By making this deal now, the Busses are setting up their families for generations to come. Getting $1.025 billion is life-changing money, even if they'll lose a chunk of that to taxes. They can ensure their children, grandchildren, and their families can have successful lives and not have to worry about money.

There's also an interesting element at play on the buyer's side. On The Hoop Collective podcast, analyst Brian Windhorst noted that TWG Global—the company Mark Walter is the CEO of—announced a capital-raising effort of $15 billion, using that money to invest in sports. Here's how Windhorst broke it down:

"$10 billion of that money was invested by Mubadala Capital. Mubadala is Abu Dhabi. You guys have heard me talk about Abu Dhabi and Abu Dhabi's deep interest in investing in the NBA and American sport. Mubadala Capital wouldn't be able to directly buy the Lakers but certainly they could invest in something to buy the Lakers…So, they announced a $15 billion raise with $10 billion from Abu Dhabi to invest in sports assets. Two months later, they buy the Lakers for $10 billion. I'm just pointing that out."

Yes, Walter had the money to buy the Lakers without this investment. But it's some interesting timing with the raising of capital. And with Saudi Arabia investing tons of money in pro sports, most notably the LIV Golf league to compete with the PGA Tour, we're seeing more involvement from Middle East countries in North American athletes.

This deal also underscores the continuing trend of inflated franchise valuations. The Lakers sale is a record for now, but we'd expect to see an even higher valuation hit the market before too long.