The future prospects for the Los Angeles Lakers took a major turn this week with the news that Mark Walter is purchasing the majority stake in the franchise. This will take control away from the Buss family, who have held it for nearly 50 years.
While the Buss family did amazing work with the Lakers for a long time, it was clear over the last decade that they weren’t running the team the way a modern NBA franchise should be run. A big reason for that was due to the fact that the Buss family doesn’t have the money that other teams do.
LeBron James‘ future is one of the big questions that now faces Walter, but according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, this news won’t actually factor into his decision-making.
“I’m told that one person that this decision to sell the team has no bearing on his decision moving forward with the Lakers is LeBron James,” McMenamin said on SportsCenter. “He still has a decision at the end of the month to decide whether to opt in for next year’s contract worth about $56 million or opt out and become a free agent.
“This decision by the Lakers to sell the team has no bearing on where LeBron is going to choose to go next year. And, again, we’ve been given no indication thus far that LeBron won’t be a Laker next season.”
With Jeanie Buss staying on as team governor, there shouldn’t be any huge changes in the day-to-day for the Lakers over the next season or two, which is likely how much longer James will be playing.
James & Doncic Excited?
While James is an important player for the Lakers right now, Luka Doncic is the future of the franchise. He’s 14 years younger than James and could feasibly be the face of the franchise for the next decade.
Luckily, it sounds like he’s happy about the ownership change, according to McMenamin.
“Speaking to people close to both Luka and Lebron James, there’s excitement about this move for what it means for this team,” McMenamin said.
Doncic hasn’t been with the team long enough to have any reason to dislike the Buss family, but it’s easy to look at what Walter has done with the Los Angeles Dodgers and get excited about what he could do with the Lakers.
Will Doncic Sign an Extension This Offseason?
Doncic is eligible for a contract extension this offseason, but there have been some questions about whether or not he’ll commit to the Lakers long term. Now that there’s new ownership in place with deep pockets, it’s hard to imagine he’d walk away now.
Doncic never wanted to leave the Dallas Mavericks, and it’s unlikely he wants to keep bouncing around the NBA. The Lakers should now have a clear vision of the future, which should appeal to a player like Doncic.
The one thing about Walter is that he’s proven he’ll spare no expense when it comes to trying to build a winning sports team. The Lakers are arguably the biggest brand in sports, so when they win, it’s a really big deal.
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