$12.5 Billion for the Purple and Gold

There was no auction, no bidding war, no for-sale sign. There was a meeting at a house in Florida on Thursday, and by the time it ended, the Los Angeles Lakers belonged — on agreed terms, at least — to somebody new for the second time in barely a year.

Lakers owner Mark Walter and Thrive Capital founder Josh Kushner agreed on all outstanding terms of the sale of the team at a $12.5 billion valuation, sources close to the negotiations told ESPN. The two men met in person Thursday at Walter's home in Florida to finalize the transaction and are expected to sign the formal agreement soon, those sources said.

What remains is process, but it is real process: once the agreement is signed, the NBA reviews the financing and the ownership structure, and the league's Board of Governors — set to meet in November — votes to approve. Until then, the richest deal in sports history is agreed, not closed.

Three days in August, one phone call

The strangest part of this deal is how fast it was born. According to RealGM's reporting on the negotiations, Kushner and Iger had been chasing a Las Vegas expansion team — a bid the NBA projected at $6 to $8 billion — when, as the August 10 bid deadline approached, they pivoted to something bigger: an established dynasty. Kushner called Walter directly, offered a $12.5 billion valuation, and asked for an answer within 24 hours. After consulting his wife and daughter, Walter agreed by the evening of August 11.

The Wall Street Journal reported the same velocity from the other side: by that Wednesday, Kushner and Iger had agreed to buy a controlling stake at the $12.5 billion valuation — the highest price ever paid for any sports team — for a franchise that was never actually on the market. "Owning the Los Angeles Lakers has been one of the great honors of my life," Walter said in a statement announcing the deal.

The flip of the century

Walter's Lakers chapter may end up the most profitable short story in sports business. He bought his first 27 percent of the team in 2021 at a $5 billion valuation. In 2025 he acquired control from the Buss family — the Lakers' owners since 1979 — at a then-record $10 billion valuation. Roughly a year later, he is selling at $12.5 billion. RealGM put Walter's take at nearly $4 billion on the deal.

The sale also closes the Buss era for good. Jeanie Buss, who stayed on as the team's governor under her agreement with Walter, reportedly learned of the August deal only hours before it broke — and the incoming group is reportedly expected to honor her existing leadership agreement, though that, like everything else here, rides on league approval.

Even the roster felt the whiplash. Luka Doncic learned of the sale in August through his manager while waking up in Slovenia. "There's not much that can shock me anymore," he told her, according to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.

Tonight, the Lakers play at Golden State — a road game on Halloween weekend, in the middle of an NBA Cup group slate. On the floor, nothing about this team looks like a business story. Off it, the purple and gold just became the most expensive property in the history of sports.