Philip Anschutz, who holds the second-largest ownership stake in the Los Angeles Lakers, is reportedly selling his 27 percent of the team.
Scott Soshnick and Eben Novy-Williams of Sportico.com indicated that Anschutz is selling his Lakers stake to two members of the Los Angeles Dodgers ownership group.
“Billionaire Philip Anschutz, founder of sports and entertainment giant AEG, has reached an agreement to sell his stake in the Los Angeles Lakers to Los Angeles Dodgers owners Mark Walter and Todd Boehly, according to multiple people familiar with the deal,” Soshnick and Novy-Williams wrote.
The Buss family owns 66 percent of the Lakers, with Walter and Boehly not only purchasing Anschutz’s 27 percent stake but also the right of first refusal if the Buss family chooses to sell its stake.
Anschutz will still have a connection to the Lakers, considering that AEG is the owner and operator of Staples Center, where the Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers play their home games.
The sale still needs to be approved by the NBA Board of Governors, but that doesn’t appear to be a problem at the moment.
It’s unclear exactly how much Anschutz will receive for his stake, but one valuation of the Lakers’ franchise was for $5.14 billion.
