Lakers Sold for $12.5 Billion in a Deal Bob Iger Says Took Three Days

Mark Walter bought the Los Angeles Lakers in October 2025 and sold to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner in August 2026. What the published record shows about the 72-hour turnaround — and what it still doesn't.

The Los Angeles Lakers were sold to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner for $12.5 billion in a deal that came together over three days, Iger told the California Post in an interview described by Silver Screen and Roll on August 12, 2026. The seller was Mark Walter, who the same account says became majority owner of the National Basketball Association franchise only in October of the previous year.

The sale price of $12.5 billion is described by Silver Screen and Roll as a record for the sale of a sports franchise. The site's Edwin Garcia characterized the transaction as a profit of roughly $2.5 billion for Walter in less than a year of ownership.

The three-day account, in Iger's words

Iger's explanation of the speed came in what the California Post described as an exclusive phone call, conducted by Khobi Price and quoted by Silver Screen and Roll.

“We were involved in pursuing the new franchise in Vegas. And while that happened, it was suggested to us that maybe Mark Walter would be interested in selling his stake in the Lakers. And we immediately decided that given the value of the franchise and the iconic nature of the team, that we would be really smart to pursue it. The deal came together in three days. It’s that simple.”

By that account, Iger and Kushner were bidding on a Las Vegas expansion team before turning to an existing club instead. Silver Screen and Roll reports that Dan Woike, Sam Amick and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic described the same timeline, citing a source with knowledge of the deal who spoke on condition of anonymity: Kushner contacted Walter on a Friday, and the agreement came together over that weekend.

The governance question

Silver Screen and Roll published a separate report the same day, August 12, 2026, under the headline that Iger says the new ownership will honor an agreement to keep Jeanie Buss as governor of the Los Angeles Lakers. The site's summary of that report states the intention is for Buss to remain in the role. The account does not set out the length of that arrangement or the terms that would bind it.

What the published record does not say

The reporting available here establishes a price, a timeline and a change of control. It does not establish the mechanics an ownership transfer of this size normally runs through. Silver Screen and Roll's account names no purchasing entity, describes no financing, and does not address what approval the National Basketball Association's owners must give before the sale closes. Nor does it say what Iger and Kushner acquired alongside the team — arena interests, media rights or related holdings are not mentioned.

Those gaps matter more than the speed does. A deal struck in 72 hours still has to be papered, funded and approved, and none of that paperwork is in the public account as of the August 12, 2026 reporting. Until it is, the $12.5 billion figure and the three-day window rest on Iger's own description and on The Athletic's anonymously sourced timeline.

Silver Screen and Roll also published items on August 13, 2026 reporting that Iger is expected to be the owner most actively involved with the Los Angeles Lakers, and that Iger called it premature to speculate on the team's future plans because none have been made.