Los Angeles Lakers minority owner Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong has no plans to sell his stake in the franchise, according to his attorney. The announcement comes as a dispute unfolds within the Buss family following Mark Walter’s agreement to sell his majority ownership to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner.
“Dr. Patrick is absolutely not selling his minority share of the Lakers,” family attorney Chuck “Tiger” Kenworthy told ESPN Thursday. “Bob Iger and Josh Kushner are good friends, and we will be joining them as supportive, active and engaged partners once they close the transaction with Mr. Walter. We are extremely excited about the Lakers’ future and look forward to many more championship years.”
Soon-Shiong, 74, purchased a four percent stake in the team from Magic Johnson in 2010. The businessman and surgeon holds a net worth exceeding $15 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
The Buss family retains a collective 17.8 percent ownership stake following their earlier sale of majority control to Walter, a deal ratified by the NBA board of governors in October. Five of the six siblings, Johnny, Jimmy, Janie, Joey and Jesse, have voted to sell their remaining shares to Iger and Kushner at the $12.5 billion valuation.
“Johnny, Jimmy, Janie, Joey and Jesse have made the decision to sell the family’s remaining stake, and we remain united in that decision,” the siblings said in a joint statement provided to ESPN’s Shams Charania. “We intend to move forward thoughtfully, respectfully and through the appropriate process.”
Jeanie Buss, the team’s current governor, remains the lone holdout and is contesting the planned sale. Her attorney has cited a 2017 court ruling requiring co-trustee approval, specifically from Jeanie, Janie and Joey Buss, before any family shares can be sold.
Iger indicated he intends to honor Walter’s prior agreement keeping Jeanie in her governor role for at least five years, though he left room for future changes.
“If something changes, then it changes,” Iger told the California Post.
Should the siblings’ sale proceed, Jeanie would retain just under 3 percent ownership and would need to acquire an additional 12 percent to meet the NBA’s 15 percent threshold for governance.
The Athletic reported Wednesday that Buss would be interested in pursuing that path, though doing so could prove difficult without cooperation from Iger, Kushner or her own siblings. With Soon-Shiong’s shares now off the table, Ed Roski Jr., who owns roughly 3 percent of the team, would be the only other minority owner available to approach.