The Lakers changed hands for $10 billion. What can the new boss bring to the Purple and Gold Legion after taking office?

Qilu Evening News·Qilu One Point Feng Zihan

The Lakers' Change of Master is a good thing for Doncic. Xinhua News Agency reported that on June 19, a major news came from the NBA. Famous reporter Charania reported that the Bass family is about to reach an agreement with TWG Global's CEO and Chairman Mark Walter to sell most of the Lakers' equity. The deal is valued at about US$10 billion, setting a record for the highest transaction price of professional sports teams worldwide.

Although Jenny Bass will continue to serve as the team's manager after the team's sale, after the sale, the Bass family's shares are only a little more than 15%.

It is worth mentioning that Walter is a "lucky" boss. He owns stakes in several professional sports teams, including MLB's Los Angeles Dodgers. In December 2023, Walter presented a 10-year contract worth US$700 million for Dodge player Shohei Otani, breaking historical records and becoming the highest total salary contract for a single contract for North American sports and the highest total price in the history of world sports.

Walter learned that Walter had taken over the Lakers, "Magic" Johnson was very excited and posted on his social media: "About Mark (Walter), I can tell you! He pursues victory and excellence, does everything in the right way, and he will invest any resources needed to win!"

As the "Magician" said, the boss who is not short of money taking over the Lakers means that the Purple and Gold Legion will have sufficient financial support. This strategy of spending money may give the Lakers more room for operation in signing and renewing the contract, and help the team improve their competitiveness.

Not only is he willing to burn money, Walter will also use money on the blade. Under his operation, in addition to investing in players, Dodge also has professional scouts, analysis, coaching teams, etc., which made them win the championship. What impact will the team change hands have on the stars? At present, Doncic and James are still quite happy. There are reports that they are "very excited" about the sale and think it means a lot to the team.

For the younger Doncic, as the Lakers' future number one star, if he meets a wealthy boss, his salary will naturally not be low in the future. But it is still unknown whether Walter is willing to renew James' contract.

At present, James holds the player option worth $52.6 million next season, and he needs to decide whether to implement it before the end of June 29 local time. At present, James has no plans to retire. He revealed that the most important thing now is to actively recover from left knee injury and strive to recover to 100% before the new season training camp.