Twelve years after Steve Ballmer bought the L.A. Clippers for an eye-popping (at the time) $2 billion, the other Los Angeles NBA team is going for $10.5 billion more.
Via Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, Bob Iger and Josh Kushner will purchase a controlling interest in the Lakers at a record valuation of $12.5 billion, just 14 months after Mark Walter acquired the team at a valuation of $10 billion.
Iger and Kushner had previously expressed interest in acquiring an NBA expansion franchise in Las Vegas.
Walter, per Shelburne, is currently under federal investigation for tax fraud. It’s unclear whether that specific situation prompted him to flip the team so quickly.
The news comes just weeks after a group led by Vinod Khosla agreed to buy the Seahawks for $9.612 billion, shattering the prior record ($6.05 billion) for controlling interest in an NFL franchise. It’s surprising that a team in the lesser pro sports league would sell for nearly $3 billion more.
Yes, it’s the Lakers. Which invites speculation as to the price the Cowboys would fetch, if they were on the market. Would America’s Team go for $15 billion? $20 billion?
Regardless, the Lakers have now sold twice in less than a year and a half for a higher price than any NFL team has ever generated.
