SALT LAKE CITY — The pending sale of the Los Angeles Lakers to venture capitalist Josh Kushner and former Disney CEO Bob Iger for $12.5 billion is the highest franchise valuation in professional sports history.
Less than a year after Mark Walter paid $10 billion for the team, he flipped it, as Forbes wrote, like a piece of real estate.
It’s a good analogy. NBA franchise valuations are largely based on comparable sales or what the real estate industry calls “comps.” When the most recent comp, the Lakers, jumps 25% in one year, the implied value of the other teams in the league rises with it.
“Sports teams are generally valued as a multiple of the revenue they generate, and when one person is willing to pay a much higher premium than the prior consensus, it often raises valuations across the entire league,” per Forbes.
An executive from an Eastern Conference team told ESPN that numbers like $12.5 billion for a team are good for NBA owners.
“Look, the NBA continues to grow in value as an asset. The teams continue to grow because the business is performing really well. It’s probably better with the new players that have come in and the parity in the league, it’s probably a better product than we’ve ever had. … So, there’s a ton of interest in the sport. I think that’s now reflected in the value,” the executive said.
The old adage that a rising tide lifts all boats seems applicable.
Will the Utah Jazz valuation go up?
Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith has already seen the value of his investment grow significantly. He paid $1.66 billion for the franchise in 2020. Even though the team’s won-loss record has scraped the bottom of the league the past few years, its 2026 valuation exceeds $4 billion. CNBC Sports lists it at $4.35 billion, Sportico $4.27 billion and Forbes $4.1 billion.
And the sale of the Lakers only accelerates that trajectory.
Recalculating the value of the Jazz based on the rising-tide notion could push it closer to $5 billion, though that’s nothing more than speculation.
Jeff Shaffer, the managing director at Alvarez & Marsal’s private equity services division, told Yahoo Sports that the Lakers deal could trigger a wave of secondary sales as investors who bought minority stakes two or three years ago realize the numbers are getting too good to resist.
“People who bought in two, three years ago, and see these valuations skyrocketing will be tempted to get a quick return for their limited partners,” he said.
The Jazz have several minority stakeholders including NBA Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade. The Gail Miller family retained a minority stake after selling majority control to Smith but sold it in 2022.
Smith has never said anything publicly about selling the team. In fact, just the opposite. He has said he sees his ownership as a long-term, community-rooted stewardship.
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