The Los Angeles Lakers were brought by Dr. Jerry Buss in 1979. At the time, it was viewed as a risky investment due to the general condition of the NBA not being good. But in 2022, the Lakers are now one of the best franchises in the league.
Since Dr. Buss purchased the team, the Lakers have won 11 NBA Championships, and several breathtaking players have flaunted their talent while wearing the iconic Purple and Gold jersey.
Dr. Buss never excluded his children from the franchises because he obviously wanted them to one day take over the team from him. It happened back in 2013 when Jerry B Buss sadly passed away.
Following his death, his son, Jim Buss, was calling the shots for the team. But his strategy never really worked for the Lakers. That’s when Jeanie Buss finally decided to take control of the team. However, it was anything but easy for Jeanie to become the controlling owner of the Lakers.
Jeanie Buss Gets Honest About Clash With Jim Buss To Take Control Of The Lakers
Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers revealed a lot of things about the franchise to fans. In the final episode of the docuseries, Jeanie Buss talked about several things, which also included her decision to greenlit the blockbuster trade for Anthony Davis.
But in episode 9, Jeanie uncovered the truth behind the family feud between her and Jim Buss. She explained the feud in detail and how it felt to her.
Via Basketball Network:
“I said, ‘If we’re not back in the Playoffs then you know I might make a choice and he said, ‘Oh absolutely.’ He said, ‘If we’re not back in the Playoffs in three years then I’ll walk away, I’ll fire myself.’ So we shook hands with the witnesses being my siblings.
My dad made it clear to me that I was going to be the governor. But I think he kept it to himself in terms of the family because he may have been talked out of it or there may have been objections and he didn’t want to have to deal with that. Looking back at some of the decisions Jimmy made, was he making those decisions to undermine the organization and my authority to run the team? Or was he just making poor decisions.”
She further added, “My brother Jimmy got involved with some attorneys. I wouldn’t say it was a hostile meeting that we had, but they basically came in and put a loaded gun on the table. Just to make sure there was check and balance, that’s all it was. We involved attorneys so we can understand what the trust says. According to our attorneys, they said the best thing to do is to put some other people on the board.”
There’s no doubt that Jeanie worked hard to become the controlling owner of the Lakers. In hindsight, Jeanie taking over was arguably a great decision for the future of the Lakers. Since getting into her position, she has helped the Lakers become a better team, and obviously, the franchise also winning the 2020 NBA Championship put the final stamp on Jeanie’s credibility as the owner of the team.
