New Delhi, Aug. 13 -- The Los Angeles Lakers are heading into another ownership chapter, and the biggest question hanging over the franchise is whether longtime governor Jeanie Buss stays in charge. Billionaire investor Josh Kushner and former Disney chief Bob Iger have reached a deal to buy the team from Mark Walter for a reported $12.5 billion, the highest price ever paid for a North American sports franchise. The agreement comes barely 14 months after Walter acquired a controlling stake from the Buss family for roughly $10 billion.

As the league prepares to review the sale, attention has turned squarely to Buss's future. She has guided the Lakers as governor since 2013 and kept that role even after the first ownership change.

As Lake...