Jesse Buss, the youngest son of late Lakers owner Jerry Buss, served as the Los Angeles Lakers' "draft guru" from 2006 until his dismissal in November 2025. Rising from a basketball operations assistant to assistant general manager, he and his brother Joey were instrumental in scouting and developing key players like Austin Reaves, Jordan Clarkson, and Julius Randle. After Jerry Buss's death in 2013, the family trust controlled the franchise, but in June 2025, Dodgers chairman Mark Walter agreed to buy controlling interest at a record $10 billion valuation, which the NBA approved in October. As part of a post-sale overhaul, the Lakers fired Jesse and Joey in November 2025, though they retained their minority ownership shares. Beyond the NBA, Jesse co-founded the investment firm Buss Sports Capital in September 2025, directs the Left Coast Legends youth basketball program, and has been battling an unspecified illness with immunotherapy while raising two sons with his wife, Sarah Jordan.