← The Stephen A. Smith Show
The Stephen A. Smith Show
Interview Only: Jeanie Buss discusses #1 Netflix show. The Laker's brand and Bronny James.
00:25:03
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- [00:00]
Greg Rosenthal
What's up, everyone? It's Greg Rosenthal and I'm teaming up with the king of spring, Daniel Jeremiah. He requires me to say that we're going to be bringing you 40s and free agents, the only podcast you'll need this NFL draft season. From DJs mock drafts to my top 101, free agents will have it covered for you with all new episodes every Thursday, keeping you up to date as we head to the NFL Draft. Listen to 40s and free agents starting on March 6th on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
- [00:31]
Julie Swerbinks
What's up, everyone? Julie Swerbinks here along with former NHL player Nate Thompson.
- [00:36]
Nate Thompson
We're doing a new podcast together. Here we go.
- [00:38]
Julie Swerbinks
The name Energy Line with Nate and jsb.
- [00:42]
Nate Thompson
Each week we'll get together and talk about hockey life. All topics are fair game, right?
- [00:47]
Julie Swerbinks
Exactly. And you'll never know who will drop by to join us.
- [00:51]
Nate Thompson
Julia's pretty well connected. She has text threads going that you wouldn't believe.
- [00:55]
Julie Swerbinks
Listen to EnergyLine with Nate and JSB on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
- [01:07]
Stephen A. Smith
Sorry I'm late. Someone died on a bus I was on. We had to wait for a new bus.
- [01:13]
Rachel
It's a horrific story, but welcome to the team anyway. We are going to give the rest of the season everything we got and make a deep playoff run. We're the Waves. We don't do rebuilding years. Marcus, I missed you in my office yesterday. I'd like to do weekly one on one check ins. Does that work?
- [01:37]
Stephen A. Smith
Oh, Rachel, I told you about.
- [01:38]
Rachel
Oh, how you like to conserve your energy. Yeah, I don't give a shit. Talk to you soon, everyone. Have a great practice. Go Waves.
- [01:50]
Stephen A. Smith
Ha ha. You saw it right there. Wave. Welcome back right here to the Stephen A. Smith Show. My guest is at the helm of one of the most storied franchises in NBA history. She's been here before and she's back to talk about a new Netflix comedy series called Running Point, which premiered yesterday. She's an executive producer on the project and she is the real life inspiration for the lead character, played by Kate Hudson. Please welcome Los Angeles Lakers controlling owner and partner, the president Hudson herself, the one and only Jeannie Buss, back here at the Stephen A. Smith Show. Hey, Jeannie, how are you?
- [02:25]
Jeanie Buss
I'm doing great. How are you?
- [02:27]
Stephen A. Smith
I'm doing wonderful. It is always great to see you. Let's get started with this Netflix series, Running Points, loosely based on your family. Why did you want. And it's Julie based on you, actually. Why did you want to do this? Jeie?
- [02:40]
Jeanie Buss
I am a big fan of comedy because I believe comedy helps people cope with stress, helps diffuse tense situations. And I use, you know, humor a lot in this business because sometimes you just have to laugh or else you'll lose your mind. So I'm a big fan of comedy. We were able to pitch the idea to Mindy Kaling, who is, you know, at the executive producer, creator, and has created. Created many hit shows. And she liked the idea, and we spent, you know, a lot of time together and telling her stories. And they took all that information and created this, you know, world that isn't the Lakers. This is a completely creative, you know, by the writers. It's not my family, but. But it is inspired by a person in a position like mine. And I think they've done a fantastic job creating the characters, allowing you to get the insight of what goes on behind the scenes at a sports team that so many people ask me about with a sense of humor. The people are very relatable. As I've learned in this country, the family businesses are the most common businesses. So we all had that experience of working with our family, and sometimes you step on each other's toes, but at the end of the day, your family and you come together to do what's right for your business, for what's right for your team, and I think people will be very entertained by it. It's the. Actually, today, it is the number one show on Netflix.
- [04:35]
Stephen A. Smith
Well, I'm not surprised by that. It's associated with you, and you're a winner, so that's the way that this works. But how close is this storyline to you, to. To your real life? In your estimation? How close is it?
- [04:48]
Jeanie Buss
There's. There's some, you know, a few true things that people will definitely pick up on, and then. Then there's a lot of creative license that the writers took that just, you know, kind of in their mind, you know, decided this would be interesting if this happened and, you know, we would give them feedback. Well, that would never happen, or. Yeah, that has happened. And give them an example in, you know, history and professional sports. You know, this is a very dramatic business, and people can't believe some of the things that actually have happened and. And continue to happen. And I think that's what's gonna be entertaining about it. But Kate Hudson as the title character really nails the performance. She's somebody that I've known since she was a teenager, and she Used to come to the Great Western Forum and watch the LA Kings play with her mom and dad and she really, she gets the character and she's fantastic. She's. She's a movie star that we were able to convince to come in and, you know, be part of this exciting project.
- [06:06]
Stephen A. Smith
Did you hand pick her? Did you play a role in hand picking her and was there some competition for her in ultimately getting this role, or was it just a situation where you just looked at her, you knew, you automatically knew she's the one?
- [06:23]
Jeanie Buss
You know, I, I suggested her to Mindy, and Mindy, you know, kind of set the expectation that Kate had never done a, you know, a series like this in her career and she's known as movie star. But now we see how much cross crossover there is. You know, Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, you know, movie stars doing television. And she just nails this part. I couldn't be more proud. And it's a lot of fun to work with her after knowing her all these years.
- [06:57]
Stephen A. Smith
Jeannie Buss, what is life like for you right now? I mean, I'm looking at the Los Angeles Lakers, and I went from wondering whether or not they were going to make the playoffs to wondering whether or not, you know, what they were going to do in the playoffs, to y'all acquiring Luka Doncic, to being convinced that you weren't going to be good enough to really go deep into the playoffs, but obviously a blockbuster trade like that, essentially sending Anthony Davis away, the great Anthony Davis away for the great Luka Doncic, to looking at the Los Angeles Lakers this morning while I'm talking to you about your Netflix series, and in the same breath that that's number one, I'm looking at a basketball team that might end up number one because the Los Angeles Lakers have a chance to win it all. As far as I'm concerned, based on what I'm seeing. What is life like this afternoon for Jeanie Buss?
- [07:51]
Jeanie Buss
It's pretty good in my world. What can I say? You know, I, I want to make it clear that, you know, when you make a trade like that, especially in the middle of a season, you know, you have to weigh so many different things that are going on. You know, we have a rookie coach in JJ Redick who has shown a lot of promise. And, you know, you, you are concerned if you make a change that it's going to disrupt what the coaches have been trying to teach. And, you know, we weighed it very carefully. We were not looking to trade Anthony Davis, but when the Opportunity came up. We, we had to look at things, the overall, you know, long term vision of the team and what we were trying to accomplish. And, you know, we had to make the tough decision to trade Anthony. And he's been fantastic. He helped us win a ring. But in receiving Luka, we have a player who has ignited our fan base. You know, he came to town and, you know, he had to process what had just happened. Like, he had no idea he was going to be traded and, but he came to LA and he saw what had happened with the devastating wildfires and he immediately donated money to, you know, the, you know, the cause of trying to rebuild and help, you know, people cope with losing what they've lost. And he's just, he's, he's just been great. It's kind of a love affair with the fans right now. The energy is@crypto.com arena is. It's like, it seems like a playoff game. And, you know, as he gets integrated into what, what JJ and the coaching staff wanted him to do, I think the, the win in Denver last weekend was, you know, phenomenal and really inspiring considering Denver has been the team that has put us out of the playoffs the last few years. So it's really ignited a lot of hope.
- [10:19]
Stephen A. Smith
Jeannie, everybody wants to know what the secret sauce is, what the secret sauce to success is, because looking at the Los Angeles Lakers franchise, I mean, my lord Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul Jabbar Shaq, Magic Johnson worthy, you know, ultimately Kobe Bryant, of course, you know, the power souls of the world. And, and, and you know, the LeBron James and now, you know, Anthony Davis, of course, and now Luka Doncic. If you're a star in professional basketball, it almost seems destined and ordained that you are going to be a Los Angeles Laker. First, it was with your late great father, Magnificent, magnificent man. Everybody loved Dr. Buss to you. Now, I mean, how do you do it? I mean, what do you say? What is the allure in your, in your eyes about the purple and gold and Laker Nation and the Los Angeles Lakers? How does this keep happening for y'all?
- [11:16]
Jeanie Buss
You know, it is, it's exactly what my dad taught me. This was how you run a franchise. Getting LeBron to join us as a free agent was one of the first moves to show that we were serious about, you know, getting back on track after missing the playoffs for six years. But the power of the brand, the platform, the fan base, the city in which we play, it all adds up. And, you know, as Dr. Buss taught me, you keep us near the top or at the top or near the top, and that's what we've done. And we will continue to work hard to do. Certainly, I think we've identified a coach who has, you know, knows the NBA, knows how to. To make a strategic plan, and that someone who connects really well with his players. So, you know, I think that gives us the foundation and we continue to build. And Rob Pelinka has done an amazing job identifying players that have that kind of competitive instinct, that, that desire to win. And, you know, we, you know, continue to build the roster that way and everything comes together. And certainly I have to thank Laker fans for, you know, they're. They are creating a. An environment that visiting teams are not going to be comfortable coming to play the Lakers at home. And you need that kind of, you know, that intimidation of the visiting team, especially during the playoffs.
- [13:05]
Stephen A. Smith
You have a guy that I consider to be a top candidate for Coach of the year honors in J.J. redick, my buddy that worked with me at ESPN. He did a phenomenal job when he was working with us. He's doing a phenomenal job with you. Now. Rob Palinka, Kobe's former agent turned executive for the Los Angeles Lakers, as his gm, I think he's a candidate for executive of the year. You hired them both. You gave the approval to both. But one of the things that folks were talking about was this whole Anthony Davis, Luka Doncic trade was a secret. It was kept from LeBron, it was kept from clutch sports and stuff like that. They had no knowledge. It was a shock to everybody. First of all, was that true? And secondly, if that is how it happened, how were you able to pull that off?
- [13:52]
Jeanie Buss
You know, it wasn't that we were trying to keep it from anyone specific. It was just about keeping a lid on something that had a trade not worked out. But then it's. It sends repercussions around the team. And as I said, we're. We have a rookie coach that we want to try to make things as smooth as possible, so trying to, you know, the. The trade talks were over, you know, a few weeks. There was a lot of details that had to go into, you know, the. The trade and, and we had to create space by bringing in another team and trading a player there that could take on salary. So it was very complicated. We were not trying to leave anybody out. What we were trying to do was protect the team and allow our coach and coaching staff to have the least amount of distractions in a business where all there is are distractions, people trying to get you off your game.
- [15:00]
Stephen A. Smith
But, Jeannie, were you concerned at all at any point as to how this would negatively affect LeBron James simply because of Anthony Davis's greatness, along with his relationship with Anthony Davis? Because he had a lot to do with Anthony Davis ultimately landing in LA years ago, Were you concerned about that at all?
- [15:18]
Jeanie Buss
Yeah, I mean, of course there is a lot of concerns, especially doing it during the season, you know, but I think Back to when Dr. Buss traded Shaquille O'Neal. That did happen in the off season. But, you know, because, you know, you have to weigh everything, including how the fans are going to react to losing somebody like Anthony Davis, who was, you know, we were building the team around. He was our foundation, he brought us the championship, and, you know, how are they going to react? So you have to weigh all of those considerations. And at the end of the day, we did what was, you know, what it. We felt for our team was the best. And they obviously agreed with what they received and that, you know, we had. And when people say, well, they only talk to you, or they only talk to a couple teams, you know, we had the piece that they wanted. They wanted Anthony Davis. So that's why they weren't shopping it around. They. They saw what they wanted and they came after it. And we had to get through that decision process because we hadn't even considered that before.
- [16:35]
Stephen A. Smith
Right. Wrong. Fair or unfair, some of the things that have been said in the media prior to this trade, whether you look at LeBron being the figure that he is, Bronny James being on the team, the whole opening season celebration and stuff like that, they would say that LeBron James is running the Los Angeles Lakers. Once the trade happened, they said, that's Jeanie Buss way of showing there's one person running this organization, and that's Jeie Buss. Those who've said such things like that.
- [17:06]
Jeanie Buss
You say what I say, you can interpret it any way you want. At the end of the day, I'm the governor of the team, which means I'm ultimately responsible for all basketball and business decisions for this team. And so, you know, however you want to read that, you. You people can. But we are very much, you know, in. Always in communication with our captains of the team. But in this circumstance, you know, AD was one of the captains. So we, you know, we couldn't. There. There just was no way that we could disrupt what, you know, because the team was really starting to gel the way JJ has been Coaching them. And we really didn't want to disrupt that if this wasn't going to be something that happened.
- [17:59]
Stephen A. Smith
Last question on this particular subject. You know, when it comes to a guy like Bronny James, I like that kid. I think he's got tremendous promise. I think that he's going to end up in the NBA, you know, somewhere in the near future. I love what I've seen him doing in the G League. I root for him. Everybody says he's a great kid. I haven't seen one individual that roots against him. As far as I'm concerned, there's almost. It almost comes. Of course, it's inhuman to root against this kid because he just seems to be that absolutely, positively wonderful. Nevertheless, LeBron's going to get critiqued because his son was in the league before he was ready, per se. When somebody asked Jeanie Buss about Bronny James, because I know I'm not the first to do so, what is it that you say and what kind of message do you want to send to the basketball world about Bronny James being a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, albeit in some folks eyes, prematurely?
- [18:51]
Jeanie Buss
He's been fantastic to work with. He's a draw in for our G League team. He's been going up and down between the two teams, and he does everything that we ask him to do in terms of the community meeting with sponsors. He's just, he's been, he's fantastic. I wish I had a complete team of players with his work ethic, his attitude, his ability to see the game. You know, I, I know what it's like to be the, the child of a very successful man, and he's had to deal with a lot growing up, and he'll continue to do so with grace. And, you know, he, he's fun to watch.
- [19:34]
Stephen A. Smith
JJ Redick back to him, speak to his impact on the organization since you hired him last summer. Because I knew he was going to be good. You know, working with him on television, seeing him dissect and analyze basketball the way that few can. I knew that he was going to be good. I didn't expect. I expected you guys to elevate offensively, especially once you got Luka Doncic. What I did not expect is that over the last six plus weeks, you'd be the number one defense in the entire NBA. I almost faint when I think about that. I know he's got a great staff in Nate McMillan, Scott Brooks and the rest of the crew, but speak to the impact that J.J. redick has had.
- [20:13]
Jeanie Buss
On the organization, he comes in with a confidence, a swagger that, you know, is inspiring. He's a natural leader. He's a great communicator. He's a problem solver. And that's one of the things that is important in coaching in the NBA. So many things come at you quick, quickly, that you have to be able to make decisions, stand by your decision. If things aren't working out, you know, be okay to, to move away from that decision. But look, he surrounded himself, like you said, with an excellent staff in Scotty brooks and Nate McMillan and, and the very first female that we've ever had on the coaching staff in Lindsey Harding, who was coach of the year in the G League last year. And so, you know, he's, he's, he's inspired not only the team out on the court, but also the team here in our business operation. There's something about JJ that's professional and, and calm and cool and collected, and he's, he's paying dividends. And, you know, I didn't think he'd be as, as good as he is, but he certainly has shown it and continue to give him the resources that he needs, you know, to, to, you know, he wants to win, and that's what we want to do and no question, make it possible for him however we can.
- [21:48]
Stephen A. Smith
That brother is not going to be comfortable with mediocrity or losing. I can assure you of that. You don't have to wait. You don't have to worry about that at all. Before I get to my last question about you, just as an aside, a strange question, how are you feeling about having the crypto.com arena to yourself and not having to share with the Los Angeles Clippers anymore how you feel about that?
- [22:07]
Jeanie Buss
Jeannie, you know it. I thought we'd have, like, more dates, you know, less back to backs, but you know, that building is so busy with the Grammy Awards and all the concerts that they do. It's. It's still just as busy. So they, they've replaced, you know, those games that the Clippers played with other events. And I've been to the Intuit Dome. I haven't seen a basketball game there yet. I went to the Bruno Mars concert. It's beautiful building. It's in our old neighborhood, Inglewood, you know, so it's great to see Inglewood with getting another team. So, you know, it's been, it's been great for both, both of us.
- [22:51]
Stephen A. Smith
My last question would be to you, because as you sit here now, as you said it, board of governor, you're responsible for all business and basketball decisions for the Los Angeles Lakers franchise to see now that you have a generational iconic basketball brand in your stable pretty much for the next decade. I mean, the brother's only 25 years old and Luka Doncic, you see what LeBron James is doing, the success of the Los Angeles Lakers, clearly you're going to be in the picture. You're going to be relevant for the foreseeable future. You're doing this in what was once deemed, at the very least, as a man's game. Clearly, that is not the case anymore, primarily because of you. And so when you look at Running Point, streaming now on Netflix, as you highlighted number one thus far and realizing the level of success that you've been enjoying, what kind of message would you like to send about what it took you to get to where you are, particularly to the young ladies out there looking to aspire to be great, great things? What kind of message do you hope your Netflix series sends? What kind of message do you hope your success as the owner for the Los Angeles lake is ultimately sense?
- [24:03]
Jeanie Buss
Thank you for asking me that, because that is important to me. I know what it meant to me growing up to see women in positions of power, and I hope that I can be an inspiration to the next generation. But what I think think has led to my success is certainly being able to work with great people. But I think we've learned that there are so many distractions with social media. The negativity that's out there, you really have to be able to push that aside, look at your own path and continue on it. You're going to have people challenge you, try to knock you down, but know who you are, know who your, what your truth is and, you know, go to the people who support you and, you know, and it, it might be a small circle of people, but people that you can trust and believe in and that believe in you and aren't out to, to knock you off and, and push you out of the way. So if I can show resilience would be the word, you know, then I, I've, I've completed what Billie Jean King did for me and inspiring me to pursue what was my passion.
- [25:36]
Stephen A. Smith
The one and only Jeannie Buss, owner for the Los Angeles Lakers, executive producer on Running Point, streaming now on Netflix. An absolutely wonderful, wonderful lady. And of course, I got to give love to Linda Rambis as well. You tell Linda I said I gave all my best. I owe y'all both dinner. Thank you so much. Jeannie, all the best. And I'll see you over the weekend.
- [25:57]
Jeanie Buss
Okay, thank you.
- [26:06]
Greg Rosenthal
What's up, everyone? It's Greg Rosenthal and I'm teaming up with the King of spring, Daniel Jeremiah. He requires me to say that we're going to be bringing you 40s and free agents, the only podcast you'll need this NFL draft season. From DJs, mock drafts to my top one on one, free agents will have it covered for you with all new episodes every Thursday keeping you up to date as we head to the NFL Draft. Listen to 40s and free agents starting on March 6th on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.
- [26:37]
Julie Swerbinks
What's up everyone? Julie Swerbinks here along with former NHL player Nate Thompson.
- [26:41]
Nate Thompson
We're doing a new podcast together. Here we go.
- [26:44]
Julie Swerbinks
The name Energy Line with Nate and jsb.
- [26:47]
Nate Thompson
Each week we'll get together and talk about hockey life. All topics are fair game, right?
- [26:53]
Julie Swerbinks
Exactly. And you'll never know who will drop by to join us.
- [26:56]
Nate Thompson
Julie is pretty well connected. She has text threads going that you wouldn't believe.
- [27:01]
Julie Swerbinks
Listen to Energy Line with Nate and jsb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.