Joe and Jesse Buss, the members of the family who had control of the Los Angeles Lakers for nearly five decades, formerly owned by their father Jerry, have now been fired from the front office roles, as per a report in ESPN. It comes after a record-breaking sale of the franchise at a $10 billion valuation. It looks like the new majority owner, Mark Walter, is moving further away from the Buss family.
Joey was the alternate governor and vice president of research and development, and Jesse was an assistant general manager. The decision to terminate Joey and Jesse Buss was effective immediately. It has been reported that the two were not happy with their abrupt departure from their roles. Meanwhile, an NBA Insider has revealed the reason behind the occurrence.
NBA Insider reveals why Lakers’ Mark Walter fired Buss brothers
According to a report by Shams Charania of ESPN, the Buss brothers did not actually like the idea of handing the Lakers over to Walter. Shams told:
“Jeanie Buss has stayed on as the governor, but Joey and Jesse Buss interestingly were two siblings that voted against the sale of the 10 billion dollar sale Los Angeles Lakers to Mark Walter.”
Charania stated that he talked to Jesse Buss and was told:
“Dr. Buss's idea for Joey and I to run basketball operations one day, but Genie has effectively kept herself in place with her siblings fired.”
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The sweeping restructuring inside the 17-time NBA Champions has resulted in the termination of the brothers, which has come as a surprise. However, according to Charania, despite termination, both the Buss brothers will retain minority ownership stakes in the franchise.