Joshua Kushner and Bob Iger purchased the Los Angeles Lakers from Mark Walter this summer in a transaction filed quietly with the NBA's ownership committee. The new ownership group is working toward a $30 billion valuation within ten years, according to people familiar with the plan.
Walter, who leads Guggenheim Partners and previously held the Lakers through his Los Angeles Dodgers ownership structure, exited the franchise at an undisclosed price. The sale filing appeared in July, ahead of the NBA's media rights announcement. Kushner, founder of Thrive Capital, brings $17 billion in assets under management. Iger, who stepped down as Disney CEO in late 2023, carries relationships across streaming, content production, and international licensing—three verticals the Lakers have undermonetized relative to global brand footprint.
The $30 billion target implies the franchise will triple in value from recent comparable-asset pricing. The Phoenix Suns sold for $4 billion in 2023. Mat Ishbia's deal set the NBA's valuation floor at roughly $200 per household in the team's media market. For Los Angeles, that math suggests $8-9 billion using traditional formulas. Kushner-Iger's target assumes new revenue streams beyond gate, local broadcast, and league distributions.
Three levers appear in early ownership conversations. First, international content deals structured outside the NBA's central revenue pool—naming rights, jersey patches, and streaming windows in Asia and Europe where the Lakers brand outperforms league average. Second, real estate development around the Arena and nearby parcels Walter previously controlled through separate entities. Third, equity stakes in adjacent entertainment assets: production companies, athlete representation, or gaming platforms where the Lakers' IP carries licensing value independent of on-court performance. Iger's background suggests the third path gets activated first. Kushner's portfolio includes fintech and consumer brands, which maps to fan-engagement platforms and NFT or digital-collectible strategies the NBA has encouraged but not mandated.
LeBron James remains under contract through the 2024-25 season with a player option for 2025-26. His son, Bronny, signed a rookie deal this summer after the Lakers selected him in the second round. Whether the family takes an equity position in the new ownership structure has not been disclosed, but league sources expect that conversation before LeBron's next contract decision. James has stated publicly he wants to own an NBA franchise, and the Lakers present a cleaner path than waiting for an expansion bid. The Kushner-Iger group could offer a passive stake now and a right of first refusal on a larger block if James retires and converts playing salary into ownership capital.
Sponsorship inventory has not been fully deployed. The Lakers' jersey patch deal with Bibigo, a Korean food brand, pays roughly $20 million annually—below the $25-30 million range the Knicks, Warriors, and Celtics command. The arena naming rights belong to Crypto.com through 2042 at $700 million total, but the team controls secondary branding zones inside the building and digital surfaces that have not been packaged into premium deals. Iger's team has begun preliminary conversations with luxury automotive and financial-services brands, according to two people with knowledge of the outreach.
The NBA's next media deal, finalized in July, distributes $76 billion over eleven years across ESPN, NBC, and Amazon. Each team receives approximately $350 million annually from that pool, up from $225 million under the expiring agreement. The Lakers' local broadcast rights revert to the team after the 2024-25 season when the current Spectrum SportsNet deal expires. Kushner-Iger is expected to pursue a direct-to-consumer streaming model rather than renew with a regional sports network, following the path the Suns and Jazz have explored in smaller markets. Los Angeles represents the largest addressable base for that experiment.
General manager Rob Pelinka remains in place. Head coach JJ Redick, hired in June, has not met with the new ownership group for a formal strategy session, but both sides expect that meeting before training camp. The front office is operating under the assumption that basketball decisions will not shift materially, though capital-allocation priorities may adjust if the ownership group pursues arena upgrades or a new practice facility to anchor the real estate development.
Watch coordinator hires around Redick by mid-September, which will signal whether Pelinka has approval to add salary for veteran assistants. Also watch whether the Lakers file for a G League relocation from El Segundo to a higher-traffic location, which would support the streaming and fan-engagement strategy. Kushner-Iger's first earnings call with limited partners is scheduled for October, and the deck from that meeting will clarify which of the three revenue levers gets funded first.
The $30 billion number assumes the NBA's next expansion round adds Seattle and Las Vegas at $6-7 billion per team, resetting the league's valuation baseline upward. If expansion stalls, the Lakers' path to that figure tightens considerably.