The Lakers are in absolute chaos right now, with five of the six Buss siblings , everyone except governor Jeanie Buss herself , voting to sell their remaining 17.8% stake in the franchise to Josh Kushner and Bob Iger just this week. This wild move comes right after Mark Walter, who only bought his majority stake from the Buss family ten months ago, agreed to sell *his* stake to the same duo. Your head spinning yet? Because Lakers fans’ heads are definitely spinning, and this whole ownership saga is creating massive uncertainty around the franchise.
The Buss Family Era Ends, and Scott Is Not Happy
For a lot of us, the Buss family *is* the Lakers. They’ve owned at least part of the team since 1979, when the legendary Dr. Jerry Buss bought it from Jack Kent Cooke. Now, with the family stake almost entirely gone, one of the Showtime era’s biggest stars, Byron Scott, isn’t holding back on what he thinks Dr. Buss would make of this mess. Speaking at the 26th annual Harold & Carole Pump Foundation celebrity dinner, Scott told Lakers Nation that if he had to guess, “I don’t think he would be very happy with the state of the Lakers right now.” He went on to say that he “never thought in my lifetime that I would see anybody or any other organization or company or corporation owning the Los Angeles Lakers either.” That’s a gut punch, coming from someone who bled purple and gold under Dr. Buss.
A Legacy Under Threat? New Owners Face a Big Test
Scott didn’t just lament the change; he also laid out what he hopes the new owners will prioritize. He urged Kushner and Iger to “take a page from Dr. Buss’ book” when it comes to treating employees and players. For Scott, Dr. Buss’s genius was in creating a “family” atmosphere, where everyone felt equally valued. “He didn’t treat Magic (Johnson) any differently than he treated Wes Matthews,” Scott stressed. That sense of family is why so many former players, including Scott, still “bleed purple and gold” today. That’s the bar, folks. Dr. Buss, who passed in 2013, led the Lakers to 16 NBA Finals appearances and an incredible 10 world championships. Since then, under the younger Buss as governor, the team has only won one title in 2020, missed the playoffs seven times, and only made it past the first round three times.
So, the big question hanging over the franchise now is: will Kushner and Iger chase championships, or are they just looking to maximize profits? Byron Scott hopes they remember the spirit of Dr. Buss, who built “the greatest organization in all of sports.” With so much history just sold off, the new ownership has a monumental task ahead: keeping that championship-first, family-driven legacy alive. It’s a brand new era, and all eyes are on what happens next.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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