You werent just a spreadsheet to him. It began when Dr. Buss purchased his dream. Coincidentally, I went to work out the next morning, and I was looking for gyms out there. There was a clause in the contract where the doctor had to give the green light because of my back, to have a contract valid, and Dr. Buss didnt even wait for the doctors. 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. I was just told that he was having this picnic for employees, and how cool that was. I remember his comments in the locker room, you can look it up, about removing a certain sentence in the English language. There was a lot of pressure, but Dr. Buss I think took a lot of that pressure off of us. Joey is a member of the board of directors and serves as the President and CEO of the South Bay Lakers (formerly Los Angeles D-Fenders), an NBA G League team owned by the Lakers. It was a father/son environment. Im glad it turned out that way. Dr. Buss responded by sending Kobe a telegram from Italy. It's always been about putting it back into the team.. When asked if selling his shares was part of his aim, Johnny said, Absolutely.. But I remember after 1985 when I was negotiating my contract. We would go to Italy a lot, and we were staying at the Hotel Le Boulevard in Venice on the island of Lido when we had to trade Shaq. I had been a coach for three years, and I told him no, this is not something I should do. Rookie owner, rookie player and we did it. Buss made several key moves in his early years as the team's owner, most notably selecting Magic Johnson with the No. It was a ritual. He had this amazing feel for price sensitivity and value. He ran the WNBAs Los Angeles Sparks while the family still owned the team. I know youre going to shoot straight. He would listen to Jerry (West), Phil but then hed get the confirmation from me. I sense that youre deferring to these guys a little bit. Back in those days you could actually raise your voice to players and theyd understand. Immediately when Dr. Buss bought the team, he invited me to the party, and he said, You know Jamaal, if Muhammad wont come to the mountain, the mountain will come to Muhammad. Theres a very subtle story there, because what he was saying is, we could both reach out. So he went to Jerry West, and said, weve got to get somebody to come and get us back to winning. Jeanie currently serves as the Lakers' owner and president. Until last week when Jeanie Buss fired her brother Jim Buss, all six children spanning 31 years in age from eldest to youngest worked within the Lakers' organization or for the team's NBA. US based Meghan and Harry.. FameChain has their amazing trees. He was a very well-rounded person. And he said, I have one suggestion for you, Tim: Its really bright in here. I said, It is. Having played, and then him talking about little things inside of basketball, subtle things that you knew he wasnt just an owner up entertaining people during the games. We made it a mission to play them again in 1985, to prove to ourselves and the world that we could beat them. So, Dr. Buss was one of the coolest owners Ive been around. Echovita Inc is a registered trademark. 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. Never talked down to people. His first investment in the 1960s was $1,000 in a West Los Angeles apartment building. Showtime was on fire, And now Hollywood is coming out in droves to see the Lakers. He moved to Los Angeles and attended the University of Southern California (USC), where he earned an M.S. In any industry, when your boss says youre doing a good job, thats what you want to hear. Am I being traded? He says, Were not trading you, what are you talking about? So we start chitchatting, and talking about other things, and finally he says, Coop you know what, I got some other meetings I have to have, but I just want to let you know theres something for you at the tunnel. So I go, OK, this is it. I figured Jerry (West) or whoever the other team was at the tunnel at the Forum. After we won our first championship in 1980, we hugged, and said, Can you believe this? It had just come out, and somehow he got his hands on it, and wanted to know my thoughts on it, especially because he knew I was Italian and I was raised Roman Catholic. Johnny never fully dove into his familys sports holdings, but he stuck around while his father lived. At the time, they only had a dial up internet connection, and a lot of data needed to be presented to my dad from the front office, so theyd use the fax machine. I knew he and Magic were really close. Theyll like this! Never raised his voice, and that inspired people. But he insisted he never wanted to push out his sister. Its very hard to achieve that level of success. All that was because my dad sat me down and said he thought Kobe was going to be a real good player. He ran an indoor soccer team, the Lazers. We all know that Dr. Buss was the first to bring in a dance team, and he felt it was equal opportunity. She was predeceased by : her husband Gerald Buss; her sons, Phil Buss and Chris Buss; her parents, Ehme Busboom and Jennie Busboom (Ideus); her siblings, Rosie Miller and Gerald Busboom; her siblings-in-law, Barbara Wrightsman (Don) and Robert Schoen; and her parents-in-law, Herman and Alvina Buss. That book opened up a whole world up to me about the founding fathers. Who is Dr. Jerry Buss? He spent two years convincing Cooke to sell him the team, in May of 1979. Jerry Buss has six children. kids--Joey, now 14, and Jesse, 10--with one of his girlfriends, Karen Demel. On the 18th February 2013, Dr. Jerry Buss passed away. So he asked me and Pat if wed be co-coaches, and I said Id consider it for a month. Dr. Buss knew his team needed more wins than losses, but he also knew they needed to entertain. In any industry, when your boss says youre doing a good job, thats what you want to hear. If some of Buss children or his ex-wife did want to sell, they would have to overcome some obstacles. I dont know if its Jerry West, or if its Magic, I dont know whats going on. I just couldnt believe it. And its crazy how the Lakers are one of the biggest, most successful franchises in sports history, and it feels like a mom and pop organization. It was nice working for him. We just clicked. I dont think other teams really wanted to deal with us to begin with, and then (that happened). Ten titles. But once we acquired Shaq and Kobe, we started beating them more often than they were beating us. I didnt really have an agent at the time. He was as down to earth and cool as everybody said he was. I was emotionally and mentally exhausted. My thoughts and prayers are with the family & friends of Dr. Jerry Buss. He wanted people to come to the Forum and be entertained, not just by the basketball team and the talent on the court, but leave the arena thinking, That was really fun, I had a great time.. Kind of a unique thing, against the same team (Boston). He talked about having two sons with this franchise, being Magic and myself. We were all super excited to see him play, and one of the referees threw him out early on for arguing calls. When he bought the team, it was more like a dream come true he told me he always wanted to own the Lakers. Youd pick up three of them, and it was the same trade tweaked multiple times. Jerry wanted to make going to a Lakers game an experience that couldnt be replicated just by watching on TV. He was raised by his mother, Jessie, who worked as a waitress. There wasnt a lot of sour grapes between players and Dr. Buss. That first one, we went to Palm Springs. One of the great things about my dad is that no matter how successful he was, and no matter how much in the public spotlight he was, he always valued his family. He really, really, really enjoyed the game of soccer. Darrell C. Harriman Law A few days later, the first time I met Dr. Buss was at the Forum Club, after a game. Youre going too fast. He had a 66 percent stake in the team when he died, and judging by the trust he set up years ago to hold the ownership stake, it has long been his intention to keep the Lakers in the Buss family. Los Angeles, Ducks three-game win streak snapped in overtime loss to Capitals, High school basketball: Southern California and Northern California Regional results and updated pairings, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame overcomes deficit to win Mission League opener, Still in UCLAs corner, Ben Howland stressed importance of getting No. In the summer of 1986, I had no idea that I was about to be traded to San Antonio. I gave him Jerrys number. He was the majority owner of the Los Angeles Lakers professional basketball team in the National Basketball Association (NBA), winning 10 league championships that were highlighted by the team's Showtime era during the 1980s. "I can remember standing in a [Works Progress Administration] line with a gunny sack, and I remember having to buy chocolate milk instead of white because it was one cent cheaper," Buss told The Boston Globe in 1987. An ensuing lawsuit split the family. But now I realize, you actually really know your (stuff)! Then he started asking for my opinion on things. At that point, we seemed unbeatable. Today, you cant. I understood him, because he was a man that loved to have fun, but he was also very competitive at everything. His passions, what brought him to the mindset of wanting to own a team and what he wants from a team, and then just L.A.; it was an all-new environment for me, and he wanted to make sure I knew about it and understand as much as I possibly could. Gerald Hatten "Jerry" Buss (January 27, 1933 February 18, 2013) was an American businessman, real estate investor, and chemist. 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. We had some tumultuous losses. Jerry Buss was an American businessman who began his professional career as a chemist and worked at the Bureau of Mines (presently known as the Mine Safety and Health Administration). He was a brilliant, incredible owner, but he was even a better person with a great heart. If there was a possibility of me getting totally out of the Lakers, then I was open to it.. It was about how thankful he was to me for helping to enhance his brand. Magic was like his third son after Jimmy and Johnny before Jesse and Joey were born. He just wanted to assure me that his promises never changed about winning championships, and being patient in the process, waiting for the right piece to come along. He didnt walk around with a big hammer. It was a tough year, a tough day. We would see each other during the summer, and I remember playing against the Lakers in those preseason games in Las Vegas, and he was always kind and always made sure he came to say hi. The hotel recommended this (gym), and I went there in the morning, and Pau Gasol was there. In my rookie year, my first meeting with Dr. Buss, I didnt speak English. At the end of the day, I said, I think we have better players around you here than you do in Orlando. People knew him. 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. He currently resides in the Greater Los Angeles Metropolitan Area. There was no secondary market, but he knew that he was leaving money on the table and he was under indexing for certain price points. The Buss siblings have occasionally butted heads in the past, such as with the hiring of coach Mike DAntoni over Phil Jackson, the fiance of one of the Buss children. Id run into him in Los Angeles at various places and said hello. There was something about both of us. But do note that it is not possible to be certain of a person's genealogy without a family's cooperation (and/or DNA testing). I connected with him more through others, some of the people that were tight with him, who would always tell me that Dr. 1 seed in West, Another Trevor Bauer defamation suit is thrown out. Janie and Joey Buss replaced them. My dad started incorporating Joey and I more after we won the back-to-back titles, and we had the mid-level exception in the summer, and he asked who we liked. He was 80 years old. While still very much involved with the Lakers, Dr. Buss continued to rely on Mitch Kupchak, Phil Jackson, Jim Buss, Jeanie Buss and Magic Johnson as the Lakers built back up from the Kobe-Shaq years into the Kobe-Pau Gasol-Lamar Odom years. He was definitely someone that was willing to do whatever it took to bring the city of Los Angeles a winner, and win at the highest level. I wouldnt ever want to try that. He showed that you dont really have to lock yourself down in one area as a person. *In the 2004 Finals, Detroit beat L.A. 4-1. I went there in the morning, and it was rare, because Pau never wakes up in the morning to work out! So that was an awkward couple of days. It doesnt mean you can always win every year, but you have to give them something that theyre proud of and that they can connect to. He was an incredibly visionary. People would say, What about George Steinbrenner? The difference between Steinbrenner, Dr. Buss was loved by everybody. Dr. Buss had the trifecta of human values, as far as Im concerned, which is honesty, kindness and loyalty, and I think that was most exemplified in the Ronny Turiaf situation. It started with Dr. Buss, and we were all upset about 1984. I thought we were at our very, very best even though we got beat by the Pistons on that 3-peat effort, we were undefeated going into the Finals until Magic and Byron got hurt. We were down, and it was that same old thing. 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. He would surprise you. Johnny Buss speaks at a memorial service for his father, Jerry Buss, at the Nokia Theatre on Feb. 21, 2013. Dr. Buss actually started in his first season, 1979-80, with a combination of USC and UCLA pom girls, and the USC band. With me, he was always classy. It was amazing. Jeanie (Buss) was just 19 years old, or 18 years old. It was weird timing, because Kobe was during that time also unhappy and there were stories of him potentially getting traded, or being able to move on from L.A., and then looking for a different situation. Dr. Buss was incredibly intuitive and in touch with the fans from a business standpoint. Dr. Jerry Buss's professional success and his reputation as a playboy have been well documented over the years, yet little is known about the Buss family. There becomes a bigger trust by an owner, a greater dependency on the people whom youre working closely with. The Lakers, Kings and WNBA's Sparks later played their home games at the Staples Center (now Crypto.com Arena) starting in 1999. And I was happy to be a part of it, because Jack Kent Cooke, as great a businessman as he was, he was tough. He had an appeal to the common man, and thats what I think when I look back at everything. If anybody thought that Johnny or Jeanie or Jimmy or any of his kids could fill his shoes, theyre grandly mistaken, Johnny said. I walked in and (Dr. Buss) called me over to his table and I sat next to him. He then reached a major advertising agreement with Great Western Bank for the naming rights to The Forum, resulting in the official name of the building being changed to the Great Western Forum. We were out there on family vacation, and (Dr. Buss) was in Italy, and he hopped a plane to come sit with me. The couple has four children together two elder sons, Johnny Buss (born in 1956), James "Jim" Buss (born in 1959), and two younger daughters in Jeanie Buss (born in 1961) and Janie Buss (born in 1963). Jeanie Buss, the teams governor and controlling owner has made clear the Lakers are not for sale. And he had his hands on everything. It was an extension of the brand, a way to reach Los Angeles. He brought Magic in, and they formed a bond right away. Thats when I learned, in my life, you can tell a lot about someone with how they treat someone else that can do nothing for them. It is. I remember him calling me into his office, and we sat and we chatted for 10 minutes, and then there was a piece of paper that he had on his desk. I dont think an owner of a team should be someone that just sat back thinking about making, Well, it will make me X amount each year. Dr. Buss was passionate about it. New Jersey was going to draft him at seven, which they did not. Let the women be the show, get the attention. The teacher looked at me and said, Dont get your hopes up too much. In contrast, Buss sons are primarily absent from the narrative for the most part. His father, Lydus, left the family when Jerry was an infant. I remember watching those games with my dad. In 2002, when the WNBA was restructured to give its teams individual owners, Buss took ownership of the Sparks. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Veteran guys. I remember walking into his bedroom and seeing 20 or 30 pieces of fax paper spread all over his bed as he was pouring over and analyzing every scenario and option. Im super thankful how Kobe wanted me on board, how Dr. Buss also was in favor and supportive of getting me and doing what it took to get me to the Lakers. He was not nearly as animated in the other championships as he was in that one, for obvious reasons. He promoted concerts at the Forum. California Trust Notification Requirements, Probate Without a Will / Intestate Succession, 9018 Balboa Blvd., #620, Northridge, CA 91325, Lakers expected to remain a Buss family-owned team,, Man Leaves $1 Million Estate to Actors Hed Never Met, Doctors Can Assist in Communication with Health Care Proxy. On Feb. 13 of 1987, I found out from the Spurs trainer that I had been traded to the Lakers. Then in his third season owning the team, they ended up calling them the Laker Girls, and established a dance team. You have to look at me coming in as a rookie, with Hall of Famers like Phil Jackson, Kobe and Shaq, and the history of the Lakers. He was just one of those type of guys. Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) February 18, 2013 The sports executive is the controlling owner and president of the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was a mentor to me in a lot of ways. But he wouldnt want us to watch as fans, hed be asking what we thought about specific players, how we thought certain free agents might fit on the team. Most owners are coming in, they have security, they go to their box, they get in and they get out. He taught us that we should do our best to be happy, and do things that make us happy; whether or not that was basketball was up to us. He was the first one who recommended Angels and Demons, before it became a really big hit. He loved to play cards, and wed talk about the season, and then what we could do to get the team better. He knew that he had this hot team in the Lakers in the early years of Showtime, but the Kings were always a tough sell. Id never encountered somebody with that type of money and power to be so easy to talk to. We had something to talk about immediately, and he was flattered to know that I was aware. Dr. Buss was there with us. That was it. Dr. Buss was one of those guys. By the time his tenure as the Lakers' owner ended, Buss had overseen 10 total title runs. We didnt plan to meet, but after work one time, I stopped at Dan Tanas by myself. Worthy, Riley, Magic, Cooper, and Buss Celebrate the 1987 Title. He hired good people and he let them do their jobs, he trusted them. In the mid to late 1970s, Dr. Buss owned the Los Angeles Strings of World Team Tennis. And so, I had to trust him. Im not going to tell them what trade to make. I dont remember hearing of him really intervening and drawing a line in the sand for those two. Jerry was confident that it was going to happen, said Jerrys longtime friend and spokesman Bob Steiner to The Sun Sentinel. That iconic, focus-on-the-court lighting, started on Nov. 3, 1999. Thats probably the most Ive ever seen him animated. Its one thing from your colleagues, its another when its your boss. We talked about where we came from, what our lives were like, and in a lot of respects we had some similarities in our lives. Jerry was soft spoken, he had a great charm about him, and was just a unique person who believed in me for a long time, and I dont think in my life Ive ever had anybody who was as straight forward with me as him. So Im sitting there waiting, and at 10:30 a.m., I go in. Where is Jerry Buss Daughter Jeanie Buss Now. Smiled and laughed, drank champagne and went to the White House. We always knew he was the boss, dont get me wrong, and we knew if he wasnt pleased with how we were playing, but he was such a good guy that you really wanted to give that little extra. Playing for him was one of the best highlights of my life. I dont think theres any thrill in it. He didnt look at it as, someday this is going to blow up and be this incredibly valued team. He bought me dinner. It would be decades later, at age 34, when Jerry made his first million. After a brief stint in the aerospace industry, Buss began working as a professor at the University of Southern California in the Chemistry department. And quite frankly, I cant remember a time where he made a bad decision. Then he wanted to work out for us one more time, so Michael Cooper, whod been retired for a year or two, we asked him to come out and participate. That was a lesson learned. And he did. Jeanie was always going to be slated as running the business side for as long as she lived, Johnny said. Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss, who presided over a team that won 10 NBA titles and showcased some of the biggest names in professional basketball, died Monday. Born in Santa Monica, California, [1] Buss was the third of four children to Joann and Jerry Buss, and one of two daughters; she grew up with older brothers Johnny and Jim and younger sister Janie. Copyright FameChain 2023, All rights reserved. And we just talked about how cool it would be if we could actually end up playing together, but I hardly gave it a thought, because I thought there was no way they would trade me to the Lakers. He says he plans to run for political office next year, but wouldnt say which one. He understood that I needed that, and I would have been lost out here in this big city. Fortunately, we put together a miraculous comeback. It was really tremendous. Thats pretty good. The takeaway is that we all have to be good, well-rounded people. After separation from Mueller, Buss dated Karen Demel and had two children: Joey Buss (born in 1985) and Jesse Buss (born in 1988). He and I would sit there drinking rum and cokes, talking about strategy, talking about the game. Everyone is tight. Dr. Buss was my boss in a completely different way from what happened later. At the very end, wed get to business, and he always had an opinion. And thats what he, thats what we, created. And we drafted a kid who we think is going to be phenomenal. I told him when I saw him in college at LSU: The day I saw you, I went and told our owner, Jerry Buss, he has to wear a Laker uniform one day. In the process of this thing, I said, Jerry, this is going to really be costly. Thats not normal for most owners. Once they got on the floor, they seemed to be able to put all that behind them and do what they needed to do. I can remember so many of the players wives and the players, Dr. Buss, wed have dinners and wed all come together. He said, I want to do something for you for what youve done over the 1980s. I was just an assistant coach, with that kind of contract. He was my mentor. All relationship and family history information shown on FameChain has been compiled from data in the public domain. We kept in touch that way. He said, Johnny just sit here because I think were about to embark on something incredible, recalls Johnny, now 60. Dr. Buss said how proud he was of us to be there in the Finals, and it was just a nice moment. After Jerry Buss death, Jim continued as the VP of Basketball Operations while his sister, Jeanie, looked after the business side of things as the team governor and president. I asked, What did Kobe think, and my dad had talked to Kobe on the phone, and Kobe said, Yeah, I can win with this dude. We had the injury to Andrew and Trevor Ariza that year and ran into the Celtics in the Finals, but we showed big improvement from the year before, and ended up winning the next two years. 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