A number landed in NBA circles on a Wednesday morning in mid-August, halting conversations in their tracks. Twelve and a half billion dollars. for a basketball squad. The same basketball team that had sold for $10 billion less than ten months prior, setting a record at the time. Above all, people are still struggling to comprehend how quickly it is happening.
After purchasing a majority stake in the Los Angeles Lakers from the Buss family in October 2025, Mark Walter, the CEO of Guggenheim Partners, agreed to sell that stake to venture capitalist Josh Kushner and former Disney CEO Bob Iger within about 72 hours of receiving an offer. He made an estimated $2.5 billion profit. on a contract that was signed less than 14 months ago. One version of this tale presents it as an example of pure financial brilliance. Another version reads somewhat differently and involves a federal investigation into Walter’s insurance business and alleged liquidity pressure at his companies.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Walter was under investigation by federal investigators for allegedly failing to disclose $16 billion in loans made through his insurance company, Delaware Life. The NBA world took notice of how quickly the transaction occurred, regardless of whether those circumstances accelerated the timeline.
One Eastern Conference executive told ESPN, “People don’t buy teams and turn around and sell them.” “Those factors have to be well outside of basketball.” That’s a courteous way of expressing what the majority of people already knew.
However, if you take a step back from the seller’s situation, the number itself still needs to be examined. The Lakers have sold more than any other sports team in history for twelve and a half billion dollars. Last year, the Boston Celtics sold for $6.1 billion. In 2024, the Washington Commanders sold for $6.05 billion.
This summer, the Seattle Seahawks reached a $9.6 billion agreement. When those numbers were revealed, they were all shocking. They are outnumbered by the Lakers. It’s possible that the market has simply raised the price of sports teams in a way that is difficult to reverse, or it’s possible that this specific transaction is more the result of unusual seller pressure than of a sincere agreement on value.
Even though the valuation raises some questions, it is not difficult to sketch out the case. Television rights for the NBA have skyrocketed. League earnings continue to rise. The Lakers in particular are popular throughout the world, from Europe to Southeast Asia to the Middle East.
This gives the brand a global presence that most teams cannot match. Iger worked for Disney for decades, during which time he gained a thorough understanding of how a single, properly positioned brand can make money on several platforms at once. He didn’t purchase a basketball team. A basketball court is located in the center of the media and entertainment property he purchased. Whether on purpose or not, Kushner’s Thrive Capital probably modeled the investment using that framing.
Additionally, there is a more general pattern that is noteworthy. The average NBA valuation increased by almost 74% in a single year when Steve Ballmer paid $2 billion for the Clippers in 2014. At the time, most observers thought this amount was ridiculous. The Clippers are currently worth $7.5 billion. Ballmer is doing well. Every year since 2014, those who referred to it as a bubble have been mistaken. When the skepticism surrounding this Lakers deal begins to feel a little too certain, it’s difficult to ignore that past.
What Iger and Kushner truly intend to do with the asset is less clear. Iger and NBA commissioner Adam Silver have a well-established relationship; they reportedly spent time together outside of work and collaborated on television rights negotiations while Iger was employed at Disney. The ownership approval procedure will go more smoothly because of this proximity.
The more difficult question, though, is whether a $12.5 billion purchase price necessitates new revenue streams, media endeavors, or international expansion moves on the part of the Lakers in order to justify the figure on paper.
For the time being, Jeanie Buss continues to serve as acting governor. Philadelphia is home to LeBron James. The roster is in the middle of being rebuilt. Kushner and Iger don’t appear to be paying for any of that. On a Tuesday nite in February, when the building is still completely booked, they are paying for the name above the door, the retired jerseys in the rafters, and the purple and gold sitting courtside at Crypto.com Arena. Wall Street will debate whether $12.5 billion is the appropriate price for that for years to come.
