Theyd fax over every scenario they had for Shaq trades. During those years, we would always go to Hawaii for training camp, and Dr. Buss would really enjoy when wed have a team dinner at the beginning of camp at Kobes Japanese Steak House. He not only was an avid reader, he knew some of the great authors, as well. He was amazing with his connections and who he knew, and now, I just had to put the work in, and I did that. He made sure they had the kind of food I wanted, and he was really attentive to the little details to make sure it was a comfortable environment to me. He got a big kick out of that, and by the fourth season, he won. I was happy. A teacher doesnt turn off the student with a tone of voice. But then right away, the Lakers started winning championships, and Showtime was coined, and little did I know that Id get a chance to join them years later. Id never been in a Porsche before. Once they got on the floor, they seemed to be able to put all that behind them and do what they needed to do. He wanted to win every single year, but he also knew that was impossible. I was just told that he was having this picnic for employees, and how cool that was. Buss purchased the team, reported to be worth around $1 billion, in 1979. Charlie is 5 years old and Chayton is 6, so that idea was as much wishful thinking as a sincere request. Jerry was confident that it was going to happen, said Jerrys longtime friend and spokesman Bob Steiner to The Sun Sentinel. That showed me what he was all about to me, he was the best owner. Since Joey and Jesse were little, wed go to the card shop and buy basketball cards, and (Dr. Buss) would love to quiz them on the players. And then 25 years later, to be able to celebrate at a different stage in my life with him again (2010). His vision really helped make these moments possible. Episode 1 of the docuseries will cover Buss' deal to buy the Lakers from Jack Kent Cooke. With his franchise point guard at the helm, Dr. Buss saw to the creation of Showtime, an all-time great sports dynasty that saw the Lakers go to the NBA Finals nine times in 12 years, amassing five championships with their owner front and center. He was that fast. Im going through a bunch of different players throughout the league, and I remember he just looks at me after four or five hours, and he goes, You know you were always so quiet, and I thought you didnt know (stuff). He spent two years convincing Cooke to sell him the team, in May of 1979. It wasnt even close. I dont know who spoke first about it, but the discussion of Lamar came up and as hard as it was to work our way through that negotiation, at that moment, it was the greatest feeling in the world to have been able to have done that. I think the everyday element had taken its toll, so he probably was spending more time with his family and a little bit less with the team. They all mean a lot, but some mean a little bit more than others. And then at the end of that, they said someone talked to Magic (Johnson), and Magic approved the trade. So I immersed myself into the college game and wanted to be that for my dad, so we wouldnt take up a lot of cap space, but we could still get valuable role players. I said, Were trying to repeat, and I know you love winning championships, and a key piece of that is Lamar Odom. Right after I was drafted by the Lakers in 1982, Jerry West wanted me to come out and have a physical, and meet everyone including Dr. Buss. Buss also owned other professional sports franchises in Southern California. *Jan. 11, 1980: the Lakers won 123-100. The trust makes it very difficult for any of them to sell their shares, and impossible without the approval of their other siblings. I need to say no more. I thought, this is the way it should be. When asked if selling his shares was part of his aim, Johnny said, Absolutely.. And he would tell me where to go get the information. He always was that kind of an owner. We used to meet almost every month at his house and have lunch, and the lunch was always the same. I think his father was a coal miner, if I remember correctly, and we shared a lot of personal things that you share if you like each other. With me, he was always classy. He basically created premium seating, and nobody else was doing this stuff at the time. He just said he was going to get (expletive) done. In lieu of flowers a memorial has been established to St. John Lutheran Church and Cottonwood Hospice both in Beatrice and Gold Crest Center in Adams. On February 14, 2013, it was revealed that Jerry had been battling cancer since the year before and four days later, he passed away at age 80. I do remember when Lamar (Odom) was a free agent, and Im not sure what our financial situation was at the time, but it was a rough negotiation, because wed just won the 2009 championship. Ex-partner of Private He also served as the President of the Los Angeles Lazers, a professional indoor soccer team, and the Los Angeles Sparks, a professional womens basketball team. In the 1990s, basketball was a little different, and it took a team to win the title; it wasnt put the best players on the court, it was all about teamwork and chemistry, and we were building towards that. It was like family. with Karen Demel{ "@context": "http://schema.org", "@type": "Person", "name": "Karen Demel", "gender": "Female" }, Jesse Buss{ "@context": "http://schema.org", "@type": "Person", "name": "Jesse Buss", "gender": "Male" }, born 1988, age 34 (approx.) And Id just played in a rec league game maybe a week prior. Worthy, Riley, Magic, Cooper, and Buss Celebrate the 1987 Title. Magic being Mr. Inquisitive, he wanted to know about the business aspect of basketball and life in general. He didnt know what the future held, I didnt know what the future held. The trade was difficult for me, obviously at that moment. The team folded in 1989 and the league folded three years later. His daughter, Jeanie, took over the Lakers in March 2017. Fast facts to know about Lakers owner before release of Hulu documentary, Buss said in a 2010 interview with ESPNLosAngeles.com. privacy policy | Read more. Later it was Miller Genuine Draft. He was raised by his mother, Jessie, who worked as a waitress. Thats the affirmation you really want. The Lakers were very successful under Buss' ownership, winning ten NBA championships with such players as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol. Dr. Buss was very thoughtful. You can be super successful and win at the highest level while being a great father and family man, and also still have a social life. He had a remarkable vision about how he wanted to see this team play. Gerald Hatten "Jerry" Buss (January 27, 1933 - February 18, 2013) was an American businessman, real estate investor and chemist. Johnny Buss, owner of the Ice House Comedy Club and co-owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, poses for a photo in front of a new neon sign inside the establishment's lobby in Pasadena, on Friday, Feb . It was a very unique way of conducting business. But I remember after 1985 when I was negotiating my contract. Jeanie Buss, the teams governor and controlling owner has made clear the Lakers are not for sale. He was always like that. My family is from the islands, so the West Indies part of his background resonated with me also. This is a year after Id left, and I remember we had dinner up on Sunset Boulevard, and Id signed this humongous contract, or at that time it was, and he looked me in the eye and said, Read my lips, do you realize how much money that is? He tried to put things in perspective as to what I was about ready to do in New York, and what they were going to pay me, and that I deserved it, I earned it, everything that Id done in Los Angeles he was proud of, and he was proud that Chris and I could go to New York and start our careers over again there. Really low key and very friendly. This is not to say there wont be disagreements. Dr. Buss will always be forever in my heart. Nights after the game, hed tease me, because wed go to have dinner at Dan Tanas or somewhere like that, and Id say, I have to go home, we have practice in the morning. And hed say, Thats why I love you. He was a master at dealing with people, a genius businessman, and really just as good with people as he was with business. If there was a possibility of me getting totally out of the Lakers, then I was open to it.. It was one of my finest moments. That confluence doesnt happen very often, and Dr. Buss was very much able to get with the moment and enjoy the moment. Hey Pat, come on down and lets have a talk. The next thing I know, theres a number in front of me with more money than I could ever dream of making in my life. He would do math tricks when we were going places all the time. Her father, Jerry Buss, had died in February 2013 at age 80, . with JoAnn Buss{ "@context": "http://schema.org", "@type": "Person", "name": "JoAnn Buss", "gender": "Female" }, Janie Buss{ "@context": "http://schema.org", "@type": "Person", "name": "Janie Buss", "gender": "Female" }, born 1963, age 59 (approx.) I had no idea it was Dr. Buss. It was incredible. He made you feel appreciated, and part of the family. I think thats what he always wanted, for this to be a family business, where we all work together. After Jerry's death, his children took up various roles within the organization, with Jeanie Buss ultimately becoming the president and controlling owner of the Lakers.She was only 17 when her father bought the team, and she held various managerial roles over the years, with the team winning the title in 2020. He always treated me very well. Thats another way we connected. So a sports writer for the Los Angeles Herald named Frank Grady, he got ahold of me, and I was really still upset and emotional and I just went ballistic. And when Dr. Buss said that, that was all our thinking. That meant a lot to us at that particular time, because it was a very difficult time, uncertain. I dont think theres any thrill in it. We were the only team to win a world championship in Boston Garden other than the Celtics. I couldnt be more thankful for all the parties involved in that trade, because it really changed my career here in the NBA, and gave me a second life. He was a very special man to me. Finally, during the draft, Charlotte took him, and we were able to acquire Kobes rights. A funeral service was held on Tuesday, February 28th 2023 at 10:00 AM at the same location. I was taken back by his willingness to be one of the guys, and his openness with his players was very enjoyable to be around. So he created the Senate seats program sort of the precursor to the club suites program. Magic Johnson had to retire early, sooner than we thought, and the team stayed competitive through the early and mid 90s, but my dad really, really wanted to get back to the winning ways. He knew the patterns of how often the boats and trains would come, and it was then a challenge to the whole family to make sure it happened and to execute on it properly. That would be amazing to me. We had a few. He loved being around the guys. Through his 80th birthday on January 27, 2013, he had not attended a Lakers game during the 201213 season due to health concerns. It is believed to be correct at the time of inputting and is presented here in good faith. And while his relationship with his siblings is strained, he shares with them a reverence for their father. Before owning one of the most iconic teams in the NBA, Jerry Buss grew up in Wyoming in the years after the Great Depression. Because Id worked on prior events like Championship parades and so on, event mode planning started. I remember the first time we did it, during my second season, he told me, Hey man I really like your game, I like the way you play, I want you to go back and play confident and I want you to know that Im the boss, and I like you. Not only evidenced by his 10 NBA Championships but also from his sports marketing successes such as creating a regional sports network, establishing the first-ever NBA dance squad, "The Laker Girls," and, of course, designing the VIP row featuring the "Jack Nicholson" seats. EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Jerry Buss' children intend on carrying out their father's succession plan for the Los Angeles Lakers following the iconic owner's death Monday. Jerry Buss, the playboy owner of the Los Angeles Lakers who died last month, has left his sprawling Hawaii digs and hot wheels to his much younger girlfriend. Hed always end the discussion with something like, Mitch, thats my opinion but youre the expert and Ill trust your judgment. Now, the one thing that was unique about him, if it ever involved numbers, I never saw him ever write anything down or calculate anything in shorthand or with a calculator or anything like that. Id run into him in Los Angeles at various places and said hello. It was a way to motivate us to be efficient. The thing he taught me the best is that he maximized his days. Very casual. It was really important when I gave that speech not just to honor his memory and his legacy, but to also make sure we honor him in a way that we carry his legacy moving forward. So I had the surgery, and one of the first phone calls I got when I got home was from Dr. Buss, just calling to check in on me. Daniel Craig. If some of Buss children or his ex-wife did want to sell, they would have to overcome some obstacles. He has put the Lakers right up there with the New York Yankees as the top brands in sports. I thought I was just starting to play well, starting to blend in. And I remember I was working as a scout when my dad called and let me know about us acquiring Pau Gasol. So Im sitting there waiting, and at 10:30 a.m., I go in. Donald Trump. Explore how the celebrity world connects. Its easy to say that he was the best sports owner around the world. Jerry Buss was the son of Connie Buss and Melvin "Red" Buss, who owned the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association. 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