Lakers Sold Again: Iger and Kushner Buy Team for $12.5 Billion, 14 Months After Mark Walter Paid $10 Billion

Mark Walter didn't even make it two full seasons as Lakers owner.

Walter agreed to sell the Los Angeles Lakers to former Disney CEO Bob Iger and Thrive Capital founder Josh Kushner at a $12.5 billion valuation, according to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, whose reporting was confirmed independently by CBS News, Forbes, and Business Insider. That's the highest price ever paid for a franchise in American professional sports, beating the $10 billion Walter himself paid the Buss family for the team last year and the $9.6 billion sale of the Seattle Seahawks to Vinod Khosla earlier this year, according to Forbes.

Walter's Lakers deal only closed 14 months ago and was approved by the NBA's Board of Governors last October. He's now flipping the team for a $2.5 billion gain in roughly a year.

Two guys who were shopping for a Vegas expansion team instead

Iger and Kushner weren't hunting for the Lakers. According to the LA Times, they'd hired investment bankers and were in talks to be majority investors in a potential NBA expansion franchise in Las Vegas, after the league's Board of Governors approved exploring expansion into Las Vegas and Seattle back in March.

Then someone told them the Lakers might be available. Iger told the California Post the deal "came together in three days." "It was suggested to us that maybe Mark Walter would be interested in selling his stake in the Lakers," Iger said. "And we immediately decided that given the value of the franchise and the iconic nature of the team, that we would be really smart to pursue it."

Iger, 75, spent two stints as Disney CEO, from 2005 to 2020 and again from 2022 until this March, and led acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, and 21st Century Fox. He's tried and failed to land a major sports franchise before, getting blocked from bidding on the Phoenix Suns during his 2021-22 hiatus from Disney because then-owner Robert Sarver reportedly held a grudge against ESPN, a Disney property that exposed Sarver's workplace misconduct. Iger and his wife, USC Annenberg dean Willow Bay, own Angel City FC of the NWSL.

Kushner, 41, is the younger brother of Jared Kushner, President Trump's son-in-law, and the son of Charles Kushner, the U.S. Ambassador to France and Monaco. Forbes puts his net worth at $5.2 billion. His venture firm Thrive Capital backed Instagram, Spotify, Stripe, and OpenAI. He's already dabbled in sports ownership, holding minority stakes in the Memphis Grizzlies, San Francisco Giants, and Miami Heat. Kushner has generally kept distance from his brother's role in the Trump administration.

Walter's federal investigation isn't going away

Walter is currently under federal investigation. According to the Guardian and the LA Times, law enforcement is examining roughly $21 billion in undisclosed loans made by insurers Walter owns to companies with ties to him. NBC Sports characterized it as a tax fraud investigation. Walter has denied any wrongdoing and says his companies are cooperating.

No charges have been filed. No indictment exists. This is an open investigation, not a proven case of fraud, and Walter's denial should be taken at face value until investigators produce something more concrete. But the timing raises questions. A man under federal scrutiny over his companies' loan practices just sold off his highest-profile asset for a $2.5 billion profit, 14 months after buying it. Whether that's smart business or a man wanting liquidity while he fights a federal probe is worth considering. NBC Sports noted flatly that "it's unclear whether that specific situation prompted him to flip the team so quickly."

Walter still controls the Dodgers, the WNBA's Sparks, Chelsea FC, and the Professional Women's Hockey League through his TWG Global holding company, according to the Guardian. This sale doesn't touch those.

What happens next

The deal still needs approval from the NBA's Board of Governors, whose next meeting is scheduled for September, according to the Guardian. Jeanie Buss retained her position as Lakers governor after last year's sale to Walter; it's unclear what role, if any, she'll have under the new ownership.

Lakers legend Magic Johnson vouched for Iger on X: "I've known Bob personally for over 40 years. He has always loved the Lakers and basketball and he will bring championships back to LA." Star guard Luka Doncic posted that he's "excited to get back on the court" under the new owners.

The sale caps a wild run of NBA franchise valuations. Michael Jordan sold his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets for $3 billion three years ago. The Boston Celtics sold for $6.1 billion last year. Now the Lakers have traded hands twice in 14 months for a combined jump of $2.5 billion, a pace of appreciation that outstrips anything in NFL or MLB history. What a Dallas Cowboys sale would fetch if Jerry Jones ever put the team on the market remains an open question.