Lakers sold for record $12.5 billion in franchise-altering deal
The Lakers are being sold to Josh Kushner and Bob Iger for a reported $12.5 billion, a record-breaking price for a North American sports franchise. Multiple outlets surfaced the deal at the top of their NBA coverage, making it the league’s biggest recent story.
The Los Angeles Lakers are being sold for a record $12.5 billion, according to multiple reports, making it the most newsworthy basketball story in the latest batch of headlines. ESPN reported that Josh Kushner and Bob Iger are set to buy the franchise from Mark Walter, while other outlets independently echoed the valuation and the pending sale.
The deal stands out because of its scale: ESPN described it as a record-breaking price for an NBA team. NBC Sports also reported the sale and framed it as one of the biggest business developments in the league this week.
The sale arrived as the NBA’s offseason news cycle continues to be driven as much by front-office and ownership moves as on-court action. CBS Sports and Yahoo Sports also surfaced the story prominently in their NBA coverage, underscoring how quickly it became the league’s dominant headline.
This is a major franchise-shifting development rather than a game result, and it is distinct from the recent WNBA stories already published about the Sky, Mercury and Kelsey Plum.