Mark Walters Lakers sale memorialized by mass layoffs, price hikes, losing LeBron

When Mark Walter purchased the majority ownership of the Lakers last year, expectations for the franchise’s short- and long-term future soared.After being primarily owned by the Buss family – first Dr.Jerry Buss and then his children, led by Jeanie Buss – for 46 years, which was the longest majority ownership tenure in the NBA, the Lakers were entering a dawn of a new era.The Lakers, the league’s glamour franchises, were going from a mom-and-pop operation to a more traditional, corporate infrastructure under Walter. And Lakers fans didn’t need to look far to see the success that could be accomplished with Walter leading the franchise. The Dodgers, who Walter has been the majority owner of since 2012, have been one of the most successful MLB franchises in the last 14 years: Thirteen consecutive playoff appearances; 12 of the last 13 NL West division titles; five World Series appearances in the last nine years; three World Series titles in the last six years, including being the reigning back-to-back champs. Even with the understanding that Walter’s deep pockets wouldn’t impact the Lakers’ payroll for players in the same way it did for the Dodgers, there was optimism that modernizing and restructuring the Lakers in other ways – such as building out the franchise’s front office and investments in the infrastructure – would pay divendends. The Lakers made the type of expected progress in those areas over the last year. But Walter selling the majority ownership of the Lakers to businessman Josh Kushner and ex-Disney executive Bob Iger brought the end to an Walter-ownership era that was ultimately a disappointment.The succession plan for Walter to own the Lakers was essentially put in place when he became a minority owner in 2021, when he received a right of first refusal on the majority share of the team.Why Walter chose to sell the Lakers now, just 14 months after agreeing to purchase the Lakers and 10 months since he officially became the ma...