Adam Silver Addresses Major Questions Surrounding Lakers Ownership Saga

After 14 months of being the majority owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, Mark Walter made the shocking decision to sell his stake in the team to Josh Kushner and Bob Iger for a record-setting $12.5 billion.

Once the Buss family agreed to sell their majority stake in the Lakers franchise to Walter, the new team owner got right to work on molding the storied NBA franchise into a blueprint for the Los Angeles Dodgers, which Walter also owns.

It seemed like the smart move, considering the Dodgers' success, with the MLB giant winning three World Series titles under Walter, but flipping the Lakers to make a $2.5 billion profit was too good to pass up on, especially with the 66-year-old seemingly in hot water financially.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver: ‘No Red Flags’ Vetting Mark Walter

Before officially becoming the new majority owner of the Lakers, Walter needed to be vetted by the league, a process that NBA commissioner Adam Silver discussed around the nine-minute mark during his annual press conference after the board of governors meeting.

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“We spoke to governmental agencies,” Silver said. “We spoke to, in the case of Mark Walter, a heavily regulated insurance agency. We spoke to other leagues in which he has investments. We found no red flags.”

Walter is currently under federal investigation, prompting questions about his situation and the unexpected sale of the Lakers franchise, which sent shockwaves through the NBA and, for that matter, professional sports in this country, for the second time in a little over a year.

Clearly, Silver doesn’t seem to be too bothered about Walter’s situation, as the league doesn’t feel there was any wrongdoing.

“Again, even to this day, as you know, these are, call them allegations,” Silver said. “There are issues that are now being looked into. Independent of Mark Walter choosing to sell his team right now, he was not being investigated by our league. I don’t know what’s happening in other leagues right now.

“Maybe to answer your question differently, I had no prior notion that he was intending to sell his team until I heard from the buyers that they had a handshake with him.”

Buss Family Rift Continues

Along with Walter selling his stake in the team to Kushner and Iger, the Buss family decided it was time to sell their minority stake (17.8%) in the team, which would end the family’s run with the team, going back to 1979 when Dr. Jerry Buss bought the franchise from Jack Kent Cooke.

However, longtime team governor Jeanie Buss was not on board with the sale, nor was she involved in the decision to sell, which has now resulted in legal action, with her petition to block the sale set to be heard in December.

Mar 12, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers majority owner Mark Walter and team executive Jeannie Buss in attendance at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

If the sale goes through, Jeanie Buss will no longer be the Lakers' governor, a post she’s held for 13 years. To hold that position, at least 15 percent ownership is required.

So the Buss family saga continues, with uncertainty swirling about the team’s immediate future under new ownership and whether Jeanie Buss will remain involved with the franchise.

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