Written by: Dustin Malcolm
Weeks before the football season starts, fanatics scramble to their computers to do research on which of their favorite players are going to have breakout seasons and draft them to their fantasy teams. The fever to play fantasy sports has caught fire in other sports as well, giving fans an opportunity to be their own Sportscenter anchors in the mastery of common sports statistics.
But what if we were to think about applying the fantasy principle to people and things outside of common sports? If we were to have a fantasy draft of professional sports team owners, who would you clamour to draft with your first pick? Who would be your Kobe Bryant, your Albert Pujols, or your Chris Johnson?
When choosing the Mount Rushmore of professional owners, Jerry Buss unarguably deserves a marquee spot. Even fans of other organizations can appreciate his uncanny ability to find a way to make the puzzle pieces fit in making his Los Angeles Lakers contenders every year.
Next: Foundations of Stone
In 1979 Jerry Buss made, which at the time, was the biggest purchase in sports history in acquiring the Los Angeles Kings, the Lakers, and their arena, the Great Western Forum. In the NBA, the name Jerry Buss is synonymous with winning. In his first season as owner, Buss guided the Lakers to a title in what would be the beginning of the Showtime era in Los Angeles.
In over 30 years of successfully compiling star teams, Dr. Buss has lifted the Larry O’Brien trophy 10 times. Since 1979, the Lakers have the league’s highest winning percent at 66%. For as long as he’s owned the Lakers, his teams have found themselves in the Finals for over half of those years. When he enters the locker rooms to celebrate with his teams, the number of Hall of Famers that have sprayed him with champagne is enough to strike fellow owners rich with envy.
Most owners would have to struggle to find players for their city’s Mount Rushmore, where Dr. Buss has to struggle with finding a bigger mountain on which to put them all.
Buss has helped bring basketball juggernauts to Los Angeles, and when the books are closed on his ownership, names such as Bryant, Johnson, West and Abdul-Jabbar will support his case for making Hollywood the most entertaining place to watch basketball across the globe.
Next: Proof Beyond Basketball
If basketball numbers don’t do it for you, then the shear financial proof is enough backup as to why Jerry Buss is one of the best professional owners we’ve had the opportunity to see in our lifetimes. The Lakers are currently the most valuable NBA franchise according to the most recent Forbes rankings, worth approximately 607 million dollars, and 20 million ahead of the second place New York Knicks.
They also own the league’s highest operating income, at just a shade over 51 million dollars. Every year Buss pays massive amounts in luxury tax in order to employ the best players in the world on one roster, but has cited that winning it all in the end is priceless.
Unafraid to spend, he is an owner of which many fans and markets dream. The Lakers have become a global icon under Dr. Buss’ direction, much like the Yankees, the Cowboys or even Manchester United. In a city where bright lights and big names scatter the skies, Buss has made Los Angeles the Lakers’ town.
I was once told a story by an Aerospace Engineering professor of mine about how a young Dr. Buss came into his own. Working in the industry a short time before he blossomed into real estate, Jerry had a shrewd personality, something that would surface in his tenure as an owner later in life.
In his short stint with McDonnell Douglass, there was an instant when Jerry had two bosses for projects he was a part of. He told Boss A that Boss B was working him too hard in order to get Boss A to let him take days off. He would do the same to Boss B, so that essentially he was free from working at all.
In this down time, he would go around to fellow coworkers at the company and ask them to fund his investments in real estate properties. He used their money for promising real estate pieces and quickly accrued some wealth. One day the bosses met for lunch and Jerry was one of the topics they discussed.
They caught onto his game and were set to release him from the company, but Jerry had earned so much money that at this point that he was able to walk out on his own accord before anyone could let him go. Beginning with that small original investment, the rest is history.
This is a true testament of his passion for being an entrepreneur and his incredibly crafty personality.
Next: A Well-Deserved Place Amongst Legends
To say Jerry Buss deserved his seat in the Hall of Fame is an understatement. You could argue he is the secret key to the dynasty in Los Angeles. No one owner has had a bigger impact on his team than he has had with the Lakers. Unlike what you would get with the flamboyant personalities of Mark Cuban or Al Davis, while I watched Jerry’s enshrinement speech, I noticed the air of modesty.
While other owners (Donald Sterling of the Los Angeles Junior Varsity team) battle reputations in court and in media, Jerry Buss owns a sparkling reputation with the fans, his employees and his players. He took the time to marvel about all the players and coaches he had the oppurtunity to work with, sharing his moment with all those who had helped make it happen.
He mentioned his cup “runneth over” with the chance of having Shaquille O’Neal, Phil Jackson and young phenom Kobe Bryant dominate the NBA in their first years together. In his ownership, many of his players and staff have consistantly attested to the respect he shows them in his daily business.
He never once expected to be enshrined with the legends one day, but the attitude with which he accepted the honor is just a single example of why he is not only the greatest owner in sports, but one of the greatest human beings in the game today. With every year that passes he puts in the hardest work and watches the benefits come forth.
Fans must forever remember his willigness to spend the money to bring our beloved players into the fold, and his ability to orchestrate historic teams that claimed the league’s biggest prize year after year. Dr. Buss is on a short list of owners who put so much work, time, effort and money into their team while consistantly yeilding results.
His success is one that cannot be simply measured by numbers, but by his impact on the league and the sport. These reasons are why Dr. Buss will be forever embedded in the game of basketball, the city of Los Angeles and now, in the Hall of Fame.
One of Dr. Buss’ best qualities is his undying love for the Lakers. Every year he is just as confident in their chances of reaching the biggest stage again. Before making his speech, Buss was asked which Laker team was the best in his 31 seasons. He replied, “It’s hard to say. To tell you the truth, I think it may be the one coming up.”
Next: An Everlasting Legacy
For a man who watched Magic dazzle Showtime with Big Game James and Kareem, one should be blown away at such a statement; but as a fan you have to sit back and enjoy his passion for winning and his refusal to settle for anything less.
The ten titles won since his purchase of the Lakers makes Dr. Buss the winningest owner in the NBA in that time frame. Even more daunting is that those ten also top any other North American professional sports club by any one owner. David Stern once said that Jerry Buss has built the Lakers into a franchise with a standard, “by which all L.A. sports franchises and most American franchises get measured.”
When the celebrities scatter around their courtside seats and the lights stagger the skies above Staples Center before all home games, you better believe Jerry Buss is in his luxury box watching his passion and his creation unfold.