Josh Kushner, Bob Iger Spend $12 Billion to Buy L.A. Lakers

Real estate heir Joshua Kushner and former Disney CEO Bob Iger have agreed to buy the Los Angeles Lakers for the staggering price of $12 billion.

According to ESPN, Kushner, 41, and Iger, 75, have struck a deal with the team’s current owner, Mark Walter, who purchased a controlling stake in the Lakers from the Buss family in 2025.

It marks a dramatic pivot for the two businessmen, who had previously been heavily involved in attempts to launch an NBA team in Las Vegas. Bloomberg reported as recently as June that the duo were pushing for a majority stake in a Vegas team through a bid made via Kushner’s company, Thrive Capital.

Kushner, who has an estimated net worth of $5.2 billion, and Iger, who is believed to be worth around $700 million, noted in a statement that they are “honored” to have been given the opportunity to invest in such an iconic NBA team.

They then praised the work of longtime owners Jerry and Jeanie Buss, whose family has held a stake in the franchise since 1979.

“As lifelong NBA fans, we are deeply honored for the opportunity to become stewards of the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the most iconic sports franchises in the world. We have immense respect for the leadership and vision of Jerry and Jeanie Buss,” Kushner and Iger told ESPN.

“Our long-term commitment is to build on that foundation, compete at the highest level, and serve this extraordinary team, its fans, and the city of Los Angeles.”

It comes amid a time of significant change for the Lakers, whose most notable player, LeBron James, announced earlier this summer that he was leaving the team and joining the Philadelphia 76ers, after losing faith in the L.A. squad’s ability to win another championship.

While Kushner, who was born and raised in New Jersey, and Iger, who is from New York, both began their careers on the East Coast, the two men both own homes in California.

Kushner’s name is arguably one of the most prominent in New York City and New Jersey real estate thanks to his family’s business, Kushner Companies, which owns several of the most iconic buildings in Manhattan, including The Puck Building and 666 Fifth Avenue.

However, the younger brother of President Donald Trump‘s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, did not follow in the family footsteps, instead choosing to launch his own career in venture capital, investing in a wide array of companies, from Spotify to OpenAI, many of which are headquartered in the Golden State.

He and his supermodel wife, Karlie Kloss, are understood to split their time between their homes in New York, where they own a dazzling $42.5 million penthouse, and California, where they purchased an iconic beach property known as the “Wave House” in 2024.

Kushner and Kloss snapped up the six-bedroom, eight-bathroom property for $29.5 million—scoring quite the discount on the home, which had previously been listed for $49.5 million in June 2023.

Fashion star Kloss and her businessman husband were the first new owners to take over the home in more than 30 years—however, they joined an impressive lineup of Hollywood elite who have owned and occupied the home, including rocker Rod Stewart.

Designed by “visionary architect” and avid surfer Harry Gesner in the early 1960s, the home was intended to “emulate cresting waves,” according to its listing. The midcentury modern dwelling is perched on stilts, on top of the beach, providing its owners with unparalleled ocean views.

Each of the bedrooms faces the ocean, ensuring they all offer the same breathtaking vista from the large windows.

Indeed, every element of the property nods to the ocean in one way or another—from the three wraparound, circular decks that are meant to “echo the shape of the incoming surf” to the “hand-cut copper shingles” that resemble fish scales on the roof.

Gesner famously spent two days on a surfboard in the ocean, sketching out plans for the property, so he could create the perfect design. Reports suggest he drew the original design on his balsa wood board.

While the property offers a staggering number of impressive amenities, the one thing it does not boast is proximity to the Lakers’ home stadium—the Crypto.com Arena—which is located in the South Park neighborhood of L.A., about an hour’s drive away from Kushner and Kloss’ Malibu abode.

As for their New York City homebase, the couple added that property to their portfolio in 2021, when The Wall Street Journal reported that they had snapped up a unit inside Kushner Companies’ Puck Building. At the time, the unit was on the market for $42.5 million.