Bob Iger and Josh Kushner Buy LA Lakers for Record $12.5B in Shocking Deal

In a staggering transaction that shatters every financial ceiling in global sports history, former Walt Disney Co. chief executive Bob Iger and Thrive Capital founder Joshua Kushner have agreed to purchase a controlling stake in the Los Angeles Lakers for a record-breaking $12.5 billion.

Getty Images (L) | CNBC (R)

The earth-shattering transaction—coming barely fourteen months after financial titan Mark Walter bought controlling interest in the franchise for a then-unprecedented $10 billion from the legendary Buss family—marks the most expensive acquisition of a professional sports team in history. Iger and Kushner, who were widely believed to be anchoring an ambitious bid for an NBA expansion franchise in Las Vegas, pivoted with sudden, overwhelming aggression to snatch the crown jewel of professional basketball right out of Southern California's shifting corporate landscape.

A Pivot Under the Purple and Gold

Under the glare of court-side spotlights and the hum of high-yield finance, the sudden changing of the guard highlights a dramatic convergence of Hollywood royalty, venture capital, and corporate turbulence. For months, the rumors out of the desert pointed toward Sin City, where Iger—fresh off his final exit from Disney in March 2026—and Kushner were quietly assembling a coalition to bring an expansion team to the Strip. Yet, as dark clouds began gathering around current Lakers owner Mark Walter, the duo recalibrated, recognizing that the game was not in Nevada, but beneath the familiar, vaulted rafters of Crypto.com Arena.

Walter, the Guggenheim Partners chief executive whose sprawling TWG Global empire holds stakes in the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chelsea FC, and Cadillac's Formula 1 entry, found his year-long reign over the Lakers shadowed by mounting pressure. Reports of a federal investigation into private credit deals at TWG Global, coupled with revelations concerning his health following a 2024 stroke, turned what was supposed to be a generational trophy asset into a sudden divestment. In a matter of weeks, the transaction transformed from whispers in executive suites to a historic handoff, handing Walter a $2.5 billion paper gain while extricating him from the relentless spotlight of NBA governance.

Magic, Media, and Capital

The arrival of Iger and Kushner creates an unprecedented axis of media savvy and private equity at the helm of basketball's most celebrated brand. For the 75-year-old Iger, who previously dipped his toes into sports ownership with the NWSL's Angel City FC alongside his wife Willow Bay, taking command of the 17-time champion Lakers represents the ultimate second act after fifteen storied years steering Disney. Kushner, the younger brother of former White House advisor Jared Kushner, brings the nimble capital of Thrive Capital, bridging Silicon Valley dealmaking with Tinseltown's premier cultural export.

While Jeanie Buss and the Buss family retain a minority interest—preserving a thread of the heritage that defined Showtime and the Kobe Bryant era since 1979—the operational pulse of the Lakers now moves into uncharted territory. As broadcast rights skyrocket and global sports franchises morph into multi-platform entertainment juggernauts, the $12.5 billion valuation sets an audacious new baseline for global sport, proving that even in a climate of economic uncertainty, the pull of purple and gold remains priceless.