The Lakers are worth 12.5 billion, and Dončić found out from the media: Rabotnički and Štip are meanwhile building quietly

The Lakers are worth 12.5 billion dollars, and Dončić learned about the sale from the media

Mark Walter has agreed to sell the controlling stake in the Los Angeles Lakers to a group led by Bob Iger and Josh Kushner, in a transaction valuing the franchise at 12.5 billion dollars - the highest valuation for an American professional sports club to date. Walter himself took control from the Buss family in June 2025 at a valuation of 10 billion. Fourteen months later, plus 2.5 billion. Luka Dončić, the man the team is built around, was not consulted before the deal - he opened a conversation with the new owners only after everything was concluded, from Slovenia. Iger admitted the deal came together in just three days after they learned Walter might be selling. The sale still awaits approval from the NBA Board of Governors in September. The club as an asset, the player as inventory - global sport learned that lesson easily.

Walkup pushed aside his own agents to break his contract with Olympiacos

Thomas Walkup wants to go to Dubai and is no longer asking anyone. According to Greek reports, the 33-year-old point guard pushed aside his own agents after they advised him not to go into a direct confrontation with Olympiacos, hired his own lawyer in Italy and refuses to back down. He has stopped communicating with teammates and with people at the club, even with Georgios Bartzokas - the coach who did the most for his career. Dubai and Walkup, it is claimed, reached an agreement without even asking Piraeus for permission, while he is still under contract. The 3 million euros a year on offer are gross, not net. Olympiacos is holding its line: the contract runs until next summer. A story about what happens when a player decides he no longer needs the club - and the club calculates that it needs him.

Wembanyama is France's new captain, and his first test is Serbia in Belgrade

Victor Wembanyama has been named captain of the French national team for the upcoming FIBA window. The 22-year-old San Antonio Spurs centre returns to Les Bleus for the first time since helping to silver at the Paris 2024 Olympics, taking the armband from Rudy Gobert, who wore it in the July window while Wembanyama rested after a long play-off run with the Spurs. Head coach Frédéric Fauthoux called him „the undisputed leader of this generation". The schedule is not gentle: Serbia in Belgrade, then Serbia again in Orléans, then 2027 World Cup qualifiers against Slovenia in Paris and against Sweden in Stockholm. France sits at 5-1 and leads Group L. Two of the best centres on the planet and a Balkan arena - that is a fixture that needs no advertising.

Rabotnički admits to a bad season and brings Nikolov home

KK Rabotnički has signed Macedonian international Kristijan Nikolov, a day after announcing the arrival of Tarik Brunčević under the rim. The club admitted the reason itself: the season behind them did not match the standards and tradition of the „centre men", a clear signal that something had to change in the roster. Nikolov is a guard with rich international experience and several European clubs behind him, and the club says he brings fight, leadership qualities and a contribution at both ends of the floor. Two confirmed signings in 24 hours - that is the pace of a club with no intention of repeating last year. Whether one experienced guard is enough to return the team to where it says it belongs will be seen from the first round.

Štip is quietly assembling a top-flight team while everyone looks at Skopje

KK Sokoli from Štip, still awaiting official confirmation from the Basketball Federation to play in the Superleague, is not losing a single day in the meantime. After Aleksandar Kostoski, the club also brought in Ivica Dimčevski - a former international with Macedonian Cup titles and hundreds of domestic championship games behind him - and immediately announced another signing. A team that officially does not yet know which tier it plays in, and is already building a roster as if it does. Macedonian basketball has revolved around the same two or three cities for years; if Štip manages to stabilise this squad, the league gains something it has long been missing - a third serious address.