The Los Angeles Lakers’ $10 billion sale to Mark Walter came with plenty of casualties. Current governor Jeanie Buss systematically purged every family member from the organization but her sister Janie likely got the hardest hit. She begged for dignity on the way out. Jeanie said no.
On the morning of November 20, Jesse Buss and his younger brother Joey learned through short messages and follow-up calls from team CFO Joe McCormack that they were fired effective immediately. Within minutes, every Buss sibling with an operational role received the same call.
Jeanie Buss’ Sister Reportedly Begged Not to Be Fired
The Lakers were always one of the most decorated franchises, but since the Buss family took ownership, their fame has reached a new mark with impressive output and big names on the roster.
After the head of the Buss family, Jerry Buss, passed away, his daughter Jeanie was given the responsibility of the franchise, while her other siblings were already in different roles.
But what on earth was cooking in her mind only she knows because gradually she released every sibling from their role.
First, she cut her brother Jim from executing vice president role. Seeing that disrespect, her other brother, Johnny, eventually resigned as well. After the team got sold to Walter, sister Janie got the heartbreak. She saw the writing on the wall when Walter’s deal closed in late October.
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She reached out to Jeanie before the axe fell and made one last plea to save face. “Janie pleaded to not be fired: ‘Please, let me resign,'” ESPN’s Baxter Holmes reported. “She was out but would be paid through the end of the calendar year.”
But Jeanie didn’t hear her plea. “She told ESPN she felt disappointed and disrespected, like a crumpled-up piece of paper thrown into the trash,” Holmes revealed.
Right now, only two of her siblings are with the team, reportedly serving as head of the scouting department, and Jeanie is managing her role as a governor and minority owner after selling stakes to Walter.
This is a wild family drama because sources close to the family claimed that she has never had a good bond with her siblings.
