As of Monday, February 18, 2013
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Gwinnett Daily Post
In this Aug. 17, 2010, file photo, Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss smiles during an NBA basketball news conference in Bell Gardens, Calif. Buss, the Lakers' playboy owner who shepherded the NBA franchise to 10 championships, has died in Los Angeles. He was 79. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
LOS ANGELES — Jerry Buss, the Los Angeles Lakers' playboy owner who shepherded the NBA franchise to 10 championships, has died. He was 79.
Bob Steiner, an assistant to Buss, confirmed Monday that Buss had died in Los Angeles. Further details were not available.
Buss transformed the Lakers into Southern California's most beloved sports franchise and a worldwide extension of Hollywood glamour after buying the club in 1979. Buss acquired, nurtured and befriended a staggering array of talent during his Hall of Fame tenure, starting with his first draft pick, Magic Johnson.
With Buss' leadership and lavish spending, the Lakers won five championships during the 1980s Showtime dynasty and added five more in an 11-year span of Kobe Bryant's career.
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