Los Angeles Lakers governor Jeanie Buss is opposing the potential sale of her family’s stake in the NBA team, contradicting an earlier ESPN report about the family’s decision to sell to Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner.
In a letter obtained by CNBC addressed to law firms representing Jeanie Buss’s siblings — Jim, Johnny, Janie, Joey and Jesse — her lawyer Adam Streisand says Jeanie Buss has not agreed to sell the team and that any vote suggesting the Buss family is selling “would be and is void.”
Streisand argues in the letter that Jeanie Buss remains the controlling shareholder of the Lakers, pursuant to a 2017 court order, and that no sale can take place without her consent.
“No sale of the JAB Trust’s 17.8% ownership interest in the Los Angeles Lakers, Inc. can be effectuated without approval by the current co-trustees, i.e., Jeanie, Janie and Joey Buss. Pursuant to the JAB Trust and the attached Court Order, the co-trustees are bound to vote the Los Angeles Lakers, Inc. shares to ensure that the minimum 15% ownership requirement is maintained in order to ensure that Jeanie Buss may remain Controlling Owner,” Streisand says in the letter.
“Any attempt by the co-trustees to do otherwise, and any attempt to aid or abet the co-trustees as such, would constitute a breach of trust, breach of fiduciary duty and be in contempt of court,” he says.
On Tuesday, the other five Buss siblings said in a statement they “made the decision to sell the family’s remaining stake” and “remain united in that decision.”
“The Los Angeles Lakers have never been just a basketball team. They have been one of the greatest privileges of our lives. Our focus has always been on what we believe is best for the Lakers, the fans who have supported this franchise for generations and the greater Los Angeles community,” Jeanie Buss’s siblings said. “We intend to move forward thoughtfully, respectfully and through the appropriate process.”
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Last week, Iger and Kushner agreed to buy Mark Walter’s majority stake in the Lakers. That deal valued the team at $12.5 billion, CNBC reported at the time. The Buss family stake would have meant an overall team ownership share of approximately 83% for the former Disney CEO and Thrive Capital founder, ESPN reported.
But Jeanie Buss doesn’t want to sell the family’s stake in the team at this time, according to a person familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity about confidential matters. She wants to hold onto the team stake for value reasons as well as to maintain her role as governor, the person said.
Read the full letter from Jeanie Buss’s attorney:
— CNBC’s Jessica Golden contributed to this report.
Correction: A previous headline on this article misidentified one of the potential buyers of the Buss family stake in the Los Angeles Lakers.
