Lakers dismiss front office siblings Joey and Jesse Buss, according to reports
Executives Joey and Jesse Buss, the sons of the late owner Jerry Buss and the younger brothers of team governor Jeanie Buss, were fired as part of the Los Angeles Lakers’ front office overhaul, according to many publications on Thursday.
The allegations also state that a number of scouting department employees were fired.
Before the Lakers were sold to new majority owner Mark Walter in October for a $10 billion value, which was approved by the NBA Board of Governors, the Buss family owned the team for 46 years.
According to the sources, Jeanie Buss, 64, is still the Lakers’ operating governor for a minimum of five years as part of the agreement.
Jesse Buss, 37, oversaw draft strategy as assistant general manager and director of scouting, while Joey Buss, 41, served as alternate governor and vice president of research and development. They will continue to be minority owners.
The Lakers told ESPN that the Buss brothers are no longer employed in the front office without providing any other information.
Joey and Jesse Buss told ESPN in a statement, “We are incredibly honored to have been part of this organization for the last 20 seasons.” “We are grateful to Laker Nation for supporting our family at every stage. Given how our experience with the team ended, we wish things might have gone differently. In situations like this, we wish we could ask our father what he would think of everything.
In a phone conversation Thursday, Jesse Buss told The Athletic that he has long felt a rift with his sister, president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka, and that he was not shocked to lose his job.
“She’s fired everyone,” Jesse Buss said to The Athletic of Jeanie Buss’ interactions with other family members who have been employed by the company.
Jesse Buss stated that he had been receiving immunotherapy treatments for a few years due to a disease he did not name.
“I kind of felt siloed quite a bit, dating back to before, I guess, the 2023 draft,” said Jesse Buss. I didn’t give it much thought, but as time passed and communication between my sister and I, as well as the organization as a whole, deteriorated—all the while I was battling a number of health problems.
“I kind of felt like the writing was on the wall,” he commented.
In September, the Buss brothers announced the establishment of a sports investment and strategic partnership business.
“The sale of the team happening kind of more or less just solidified it in my mind,” Jesse Buss stated. “And I just kind of expected it. I have, of course, loved this profession for a very long time. And I adore this company. The fans are amazing. Los Angeles is a city that I adore. For the most part, it’s all I’ve ever known.
Joey Buss also held the positions of CEO and team president for the South Bay Lakers, the Lakers’ G League affiliate.
Being a Lakers supporter “first and foremost,” Jesse Buss, who accompanied his brother in bringing players like Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura to Los Angeles, stated that his dismissal was not bittersweet.
“Even if I’m not part of the organization in any capacity, I’m always gonna root for this team,” he said to The Athletic.
In 1979, Jerry Buss paid Jack Kent Cooke $67.5 million to acquire the Lakers, the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings, and the Forum. In 2013, Jerry Buss passed away at the age of 80.
