It’s been nearly a month since the NBA world learned about the Buss family’s decision to sell majority ownership of the iconic Los Angeles Lakers organization to Los Angeles Dodgers controlling owner Mark Walter. News of the agreement leaked on June 18.
The Lakers reportedly gave star guard Luka Doncic a heads-up about the ownership change, and the Slovenian took to X not long after and wrote in a post that he was “looking forward to meeting” Walter.
However, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Ramona Shelburne, star forward LeBron James — who is in the twilight of his career at 40 years and not exactly the team’s face of the future — was not given the same notice as Doncic.
“When the Buss family agreed to sell a majority stake in the franchise to Mark Walter on June 18, Doncic was given a heads-up and notably posted a congratulations on social media afterward,” Shelburne and Windhorst wrote. “James was not given the same notice and did not post any public acknowledgement afterward.”
In Walter, the Lakers have someone who’s already experienced loads of success owning professional sports organizations. The Dodgers have been one of the top MLB franchises in recent memory under Walter’s ownership, and they have won a pair of World Series titles in this decade alone.
The rationale for the Lakers informing Doncic of Walter’s purchase of the team might just be that L.A. is hoping Doncic will be its franchise cornerstone for years to come. Compared to James, who’s long in the tooth, Doncic is just 26 years old and won’t turn 27 until February of next year.
James’ relationship with the Lakers does not appear to be all that great right now, and perhaps the communication surrounding the team sale has played a part in the apparent quagmire the two sides are in currently.
With any luck, James can still have a solid relationship with Walter even if he wasn’t briefed on his purchase of the team like Doncic was, and it should be exciting to see how the Lakers fare with Walter at the helm in his maiden season as the team’s majority owner.
But in the meantime, James’ future with the franchise is going to be a storyline to watch as the summer continues.
