The Los Angeles Lakers are preparing for a sweeping transformation under Mark Walter that goes far beyond the roster.
Per Dan Woike of The Athletic, the Lakers are bracing for a significant front-office overhaul this summer, indicating the model will closely resemble the infrastructure of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“The summer presents an opportunity, armed with significant cap flexibility, to start building the necessary components of a modern front office and reap early benefits,” Woike wrote.
“League sources say that includes significant hires to a wide range of front-office positions this summer, with the Lakers expected to model their front office after the World Series-winning Los Angeles Dodgers.”
Around the league, the anticipated scope of change has not gone unnoticed. One rival executive summed up the mood succinctly.
“It’s going to be scary,” the anonymous executive was quoted saying, reflecting a growing belief that a fully built-out Lakers front office could create a competitive edge untouched by the NBA‘s salary-cap constraints.
A successful model across multiple sports
This internal restructuring accelerated following the NBA Board of Governors’ approval of the sale of the controlling ownership stake to Mark Walter at a $10 billion valuation, the highest ever for a North American sports franchise.
Walter, chairman and CEO of TWG Global, initially purchased a minority stake in 2021 before exercising his right of first refusal to assume majority control. The league approved the transaction in October.
Since becoming the controlling owner of the Dodgers in 2012, Walter has overseen one of the most successful runs in modern baseball, highlighted by consistent postseason contention and three World Series titles in 2020, 2024, and 2025.
His influence, however, extends into other sports too. Walter also holds ownership stakes in the Los Angeles Sparks, Chelsea FC, the Professional Women’s Hockey League, and multiple teams under TWG Motorsports.
With NBA salary-cap rules preventing a Dodgers-style spending spree on players, league observers believe Walter‘s vision for the Lakers will focus on elite support systems surrounding basketball operations.
In November, the Lakers parted ways with brothers Joey Buss and Jesse Buss, ending more than two decades of day-to-day Buss family involvement in basketball operations.
Walter’s sweeping changes in Lakers front office
Multiple members of the scouting department were also dismissed as part of the restructuring.
The Buss brothers played instrumental roles in identifying and developing talent such as Austin Reaves, Kyle Kuzma, Jordan Clarkson, Larry Nance Jr., Ivica Zubac, and Max Christie.
Of that group, only Reaves remains with the franchise. He is projected to be in line for a historic contract next summer for an undrafted player, or could emerge as the centerpiece of a blockbuster trade involving Giannis Antetokounmpo.
While Jeanie Buss remains the Lakers‘ team governor for at least five years under the terms of the sale agreement, scrutiny is intensifying around her top basketball executive, Rob Pelinka.
Pelinka‘s long-term standing may hinge on how the remainder of the season unfolds.
With unprecedented financial backing and a successful baseball blueprint, the Lakers appear headed toward an important offseason that could shape their success for the next decade.
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