“And that’s dangerous, man. That is dangerous.” When Draymond Green said that on his podcast this week, he wasn’t talking about some new offensive scheme or a rising star. He was talking about the Los Angeles Lakers. But it wasn’t a player that had him spooked. It was a number: $10 billion. That’s the record-shattering price the Buss family just got for a controlling stake in the team, a sale that sent a shockwave through the entire league. And for Draymond, a guy who has built a career battling the Purple and Gold, this isn’t just a business deal. It’s a warning shot. It’s not the price tag itself that has Green so concerned. It’s the man behind the money, Mark Walter, and what his arrival means for the twilight of LeBron James’ career.
For years, the Lakers have been an iconic brand, but they’ve operated under a specific set of financial constraints. As Draymond laid out on his show with Baron Davis, the Buss family, for all their success, were—by NBA owner standards—one of the league’s “least wealthiest families.”
“They had the big asset, in which they just sold,” Green explained, “but that was… that’s kinda the source of their income. And so when that is the source of your income, you gon’ run it a little differently. You’re gon’ be more mindful.” He even pointed to the Lakers’ massive regional TV deal with Spectrum—a 20-year, $4 billion behemoth—as the financial lifeline that kept them profitable when other teams were losing money during the COVID era. It was a huge asset, but it was also a crutch.
Well, Draymond fears now that mindfulness is officially over. The new owner, Mark Walter, is a different kind of animal. He’s the CEO of a firm managing over $300 billion, and he’s the guy who turned the Los Angeles Dodgers into a financial juggernaut, signing off on record-shattering contracts for superstars like Shohei Ohtani without blinking. As Lakers insiders Andy and Brian Kamenetzky have noted, this isn’t just a change in bank accounts but a change in philosophy. “Five years from now, I’ll say this, the Lakers will not have a three-person basketball ops department,” Andy Kamenetzky predicted, signaling the end of the Lakers’ famously small inner circle.
And that’s the reality that has Draymond so wary about LeBron’s future. “Now you got an owner with the deep pockets, he gon’ say — well no, I don’t need that money. Take all of that money and put it back into the team, and go get me this guy, and go get me that guy,” Green said. “We’ll pay the tax… it makes the Lakers so dangerous.” This is the crux of it.
Just as LeBron is finally showing signs of his basketball mortality, admitting “you think about when the end is,” and just as his body is starting to “run out of gas” in the playoffs, the Lakers have been handed a blank check. And that’s what has Draymond so wary about LeBron’s future. “Now you got an owner with the deep pockets, he gon’ say — well no, I don’t need that money. Take all of that money and put it back into the team, and go get me this guy, and go get me that guy,” Green said. “We’ll pay the tax… it makes the Lakers so dangerous.” The timing is what makes this so potent. Just as LeBron is finally showing signs of his basketball mortality—he suffered a Grade 2 MCL sprain in the playoffs and needed surgery—the Lakers have been handed a blank check.
After the Lakers’ playoff exit, his former teammate Matt Barnes bluntly stated what many were thinking. “The one thing I saw… is that he just ran out of gas in the playoffs.” Even LeBron himself, who once dreamed of playing with both of his sons, recently called the idea of waiting for his younger son, Bryce, “insane.”
Jan 28, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) and guard Bronny James (9) look on during the third quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
The King knows the end is near. But just as Father Time is catching up, the Lakers have been given the financial firepower to build a fortress around him. But while Draymond is sounding the alarm, the reality behind the sale is far more complex—and reveals why this might just be the smartest move the Lakers have made in years.
Why Jeanie Buss’ $10B gamble Is a win-win for the Lakers and LeBron
This was a solution to two ticking time bombs that threatened the Lakers’ future: a bitter family feud and a looming financial crisis. The internal power struggle with her brothers, Jim and Johnny, has been well-documented, but the real threat was the Buss family trust itself. It was reportedly a “last man standing” arrangement. This structure was actually sowing division and preventing long-term planning. By selling, Jeanie secured a massive payday for every branch of the family tree.
But more importantly, she saw the iceberg before the ship hit it. Contrary to what Draymond thinks, that massive local TV deal with Spectrum wasn’t a long-term lifeline but rather a ticking clock. As ESPN’s Brian Windhorst has explained, with the regional sports network model collapsing nationwide, that asset was about to become a liability. “Whenever that runs out,” Windhorst warned, “the Lakers are not gonna be in a position to keep up with everybody else.” Jeanie didn’t wait for the collapse. She cashed out at the absolute peak of the market.
And here’s the genius part: she didn’t just sell to the highest bidder. In an era where NBA teams are increasingly being treated like real estate assets (the Mavericks) or venture capital plays (the Celtics), Jeanie handed the keys to a proven winner. Mark Walter is a sports guy through and through. Just look at his track record with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He invests in infrastructure, analytics, and star power. He’s a sports guy, and as Magic Johnson put it, “He’s driven by winning, excellence, and doing everything the right way.”
Moreover, this shift directly impacts LeBron James’s future. The Lakers can provide him with the support system he needs to prolong his career and chase one more title. But the sale also had an unintended, massive benefit for LeBron’s post-playing career. For years, he has openly stated his dream: “I wanna own a team. I want a team in Vegas.” The biggest roadblock has always been the league’s owners, who were hesitant to dilute their profits by expanding. The Lakers’ $10 billion sale just changed that calculus entirely.
As ESPN’s Tim Bontemps explained, that staggering valuation makes the price of an expansion team skyrocket—likely to around $6 billion. For the 30 current owners, that means a two-team expansion would create a $12 billion pot of money that doesn’t get shared with the players. That’s a $400 million check for every single owner, just for voting yes. Draymond might be wary of LeBron’s future on the court, but Jeanie Buss’s decision may have just paved the way for King James’s empire in the desert.
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