The NBA and the entire sports world lost one of their greatest owners in Jerry Buss.  The things he did not only changed the NBA for the better, but changed the landscape of sports as we know it today.  

Winning championships was one of his mainstays, but the other was making the fans happy.  That can be said with his ‘showtime’ Lakers of the 1980s who brought titles and entertainment to what many consider the entertainment capital of the world in Los Angeles.

Cheerleaders started in the NBA with the Laker Girls the first year Jerry Buss took over the team.  He started an exclusive television network to broadcast Lakers games in 1985 with the launch of Prime Ticket.  Ultimately it set the stage for many other sports teams to acquire exclusive television rights deals in the near future.

He was honored as a Hall of Famer in 2010 with his formal induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame.  He once said in an interview that when he purchased the Los Angeles Lakers that he wanted folks to think of the Lakers when they thought of the city of Los Angeles.  He certainly succeeded in that regard.  But perhaps what I will remember the most about him is that he had one of the best runs of success in sports history.

For the thirty two years he owned the Los Angeles Lakers, there were only two years in which the Lakers had losing seasons. Sixteen appearances in the NBA Finals and ten titles to show for it. That is an incredible run of success.

In my mind he is without a doubt one of the best owners in any sport.  He wanted to win and he was willing to spend to do it. That’s what you would want out of the owner of a professional sports team.  Win at all cost.  If you win, the fans will come.  They have and they will never forget the great Jerry Buss.