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Los Angeles Lakers governor Jeanie Buss could seek a preliminary injunction to temporarily block the sale of the family's remaining ownership stake. NBA analyst and former attorney Nate Duncan explained on Buha's Block that Buss could ask a judge to stop the transaction from moving forward while the court determines whether her siblings have the authority to sell the family's remaining shares. "What they would – you would think she would do at some point – would be to file an injunction," Duncan said. "Injunction is basically where you say, 'Hey, court. Look at this case. I know we haven't had time to fully decide it, but something is going to happen that you can't put back in the bottle.'"
The Los Angeles Lakers will honor Phil Jackson -- who won five of his unprecedented 11 NBA coaching titles in L.A. -- with a statue next season, the team announced Tuesday. "Phil Jackson defines championship basketball for a reason," Lakers acting governor Jeanie Buss said in a statement. "His masterful approach to coaching brought out the best in some of the greatest athletes to ever play the game. After he accepted my dad's invitation to join the Lakers, Phil's unmatched creativity and commitment to excellence restored our championship legacy, bringing five titles and setting a standard of excellence for generations to come. "It is a great joy to be able to mark that achievement with the statue he so richly deserves."
The initial court hearing as part of Lakers Governor Jeanie Buss’ petition to stop her siblings from selling the family’s ownership shares of the Lakers has been rescheduled. Jeanie Buss’ attorney, Adam Streisand, filed a continuation (postponement) in her petition in Los Angeles Superior Court after the hearing was initially scheduled for Nov. 5. The continuation request was granted, with the hearing being rescheduled for Dec. 8.
Dan Woike: According to court documents, attorneys for Jeanie Buss filed for a continuance in her petition to stop the family trust from selling the Lakers. The hearing is now scheduled for Dec. 8.
Danny Green on Lakers’ sale: You want owners that are in this league that care about the game and not just about making a buck or just the other stuff that doesn't really matter. Owners that actually want to be around, be at the games, and then care to build their teams and put money into the team… Jay Wagers: Instead of a corporation. Green: Yeah. Byron Scott: "Listen, it matters but it don't matter because we got no say so whatsoever. You know what I'm saying? But it matters because of the fact that when you play for the Lakers, like we have, and it's under the Buss family, that umbrella, you just never thought or never imagined it ever being owned by somebody else. So, I'm sure just like all three of us, the first sale to the Walters Group for 10 billion, we all were like, 'What?' They sold? And then my second thought was, 'Oh shit, 10 billion, okay, well I get it.' You know what I'm saying? But you still have that initial shock of them being sold because you just never fathomed the fact that the Buss family would not own the Lakers."
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Ramona Shelburne: ‘The only matter is really whether Jeanie Buss can stay on as controlling owner, because her deal there was with Mark Walter. It was written in paperwork. It wasn't just a handshake agreement. I don't know what happens to that paperwork or how it was written and whether that will stand up to this sale.’
Sam Amick: Per sources, Jeanie Buss contends that the Buss family meeting which was called for ahead of the Iger-Kushner sale was re: the “last man standing” issue with the family Trust. This is Jeanie’s attorney, Adam Streisand, detailing those “ongoing discussions” during an Aug. 19 virtual meeting between the attorneys. nytimes.com/athletic/75360 @TheAthletic @MelodyGutierrez
Jeanie Buss, who was chosen by her late father and longtime Lakers owner, Jerry Buss, as his successor before he died in 2013, called her siblings’ behavior “devious” and said in the court filing that they should be held in contempt while also being “liable for damages.” She also called for the removal of Joey and Janie Buss as co-trustees of a trust that holds the family’s remaining stake in the Lakers (17.8 percent), citing breach of fiduciary duty. NBA rules mandate that team governors own at least 15 percent of the team.
Jeanie Buss has petitioned a Los Angeles Superior Court asking that a judge block her five siblings from selling the family’s remaining stake in the Los Angeles Lakers, while accusing them of secretly orchestrating a deal to try to remove her as the team’s governor. The petition, which was processed by the court on Wednesday, is the strongest sign yet that this feud won’t be ending anytime soon.
Jeanie Buss argued in the petition that selling doesn’t make financial sense given the team’s “continuously skyrocketing value,” adding that her goal is to carry out her father’s legacy and create value for fans and the Buss family. That stock will only rise under the new ownership group, she argued.
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The point is, there was a rational reason for the T-Wolves flip -- Lore could have gone on the open market and sold it at a valuation of $5B but wanted status quo and sold at $4.5B. The Lakers’ situation isn’t as clear cut, with sources believing Commissioner Adam Silver -- who has always been close with Jeanie Buss -- will try to help smooth over the Buss family chaos.
Several Lakers legends weighed in on the stunning ownership upheaval surrounding one of sports’ most recognizable franchises, speaking exclusively with the California Post at the Harold & Carole Pump Foundation’s 26th Anniversary Celebrity Dinner on Thursday night at the Beverly Hilton. “I don’t think he [Dr. Jerry Buss] would be very happy with the state of the Lakers right now,” three-time Lakers champion Byron Scott said when asked about the family dispute.
“That would be sad,” Horry told the California Post. “It would be strange and very, very sad.” Horry pointed beyond championships and banners to Jerry Buss’ lasting fingerprints on the NBA — the marriage of basketball and Hollywood, the Showtime Era, the Laker Girls and the Forum Club. “There are so many things like that that he brought to basketball that all these other organizations kind of piggybacked off of,” Horry said. “So for the Buss family not to be involved in some way would be such a sad thing.”
But what makes the Buss trust unusual, according to trust and estate experts, is a so-called “last-person-standing” provision that redistributes the shares to the living members if someone dies. “Unless a beneficiary sells his or her share while still alive, it passes to the remaining surviving beneficiaries as each passes, until there is only one left who gets it all,” Schneider said. “Supposedly, Jerry Buss did this to ensure that one of his kids would always own the team but it also creates a huge incentive to sell while still alive.”