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With this season's Lakers struggling at 25-29 and 10th in the Western Conference entering the second half ot the season, team spokesman John Black said Buss had prepared the franchise for the transition ahead. His son Jim, the Lakers' executive vice president of player personnel, has been running the basketball operations since 2011. His daughter, Jeanie, has overseen the business side. "The future of the organization will remain unchanged. Dr. Buss set it up years in advance — he planned for the team to remain with the family," Black said. "As far as the operation and running of the team, that will be unchanged." USA Today Sports

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss 

But it remains to be seen who will be the dominant voice in running the Lakers' show, a job Buss did masterfully on the marketing and basketball side. Hall of Famer Magic Johnson clearly is aligned with Jeanie Buss. "Now (Buss) leaves and incredible organization to his kids, and Jeanie Buss is so smart and intelligent," Johnson said Monday in an interview with ESPN. "He sent her to (University of Southern California) business school, and he knew that he wanted her to be a major factor and be a part of the Laker organization and probably run it one day." USA Today Sports

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss, Jeanie Buss 

So when he took over the Lakers, he had no intention of being a Jerry Jones by meddling in the intricacies of personnel decisions. For that, he had Bill Sharman, Jerry West and a string of competent coaches. Buss focused instead on marketing the team. Magic Johnson had already been drafted by the Lakers by the time Buss took over the club, but it was Buss who envisioned that the unorthodox point guard with the brilliant ball-handling skills, flashy style and ebullient personality could not only be the central figure in a championship run, but also for a unique brand of basketball that combined sports and entertainment. Long a fervent supporter of his alma mater, USC, Buss took two successful elements from Trojan games – cheerleaders and a band – to build his brand. Yahoo! Sports

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss 

Like any successful product, Buss' brainchild needed a name. For that, he reached back to his nights at a Santa Monica nightclub named The Horn. The evening's entertainment there would begin with one, then two, then three singers rising from tables spread around the room, each proclaiming, "It's Showtime." So Showtime it would be for the Lakers. "At that time," Buss recalled, "people were saying, 'Don't bother to go to the game. Just pop in on the telecast for the last three minutes and you can see the whole thing.' We wanted to change that, and one way was to have entertainment all the way through the game." Yahoo! Sports

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss 

When Buss took over the Lakers, courtside seats were $15. "Originally, I wanted to free up some floor seats," he said, "so that not only myself, but my friends – a lot of attorneys and accountants who helped me put together the deal to buy the Lakers – could enjoy them. "I had been trying to buy floor seats for perhaps 10 years before I purchased the team, but there were never any for sale. So, I thought, they must be underpriced. I figured I'd increase them from $15 up to $30. Nobody cancelled. I then decided to go to $60, figuring that, for sure, we would get eight or 10 cancellations." Eventually, when the price went over $100, Buss found some seats for his friends. But not many were available – even today when those seats are more than $2,700 for the regular season and more than $3,000 for the playoffs. Yahoo! Sports

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss 

Most recently, Johnson said Buss took great pride in Johnson buying into the Los Angeles Dodgers, the team that had owned Los Angeles before Buss turned L.A. into Showtime for the Lakers. "The first call I got when we bought the Dodgers was from Dr. Buss. I thought he bought the Dodgers, he was so happy," Johnson said. "It was just a father being proud of a son. He would always ask me, 'What's your next move?' " USA Today Sports

Los Angeles Lakers, Magic Johnson, Jerry Buss 

"This is an extremely sad day for me," said West. "As I have said many times, I have been blessed to work for Jerry Buss, the most successful owner in basketball history. His incredible commitment and desire to build a championship-caliber team that could sustain success over a long period of time has been unmatched." Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry West, Jerry Buss 

"My thoughts and prayers are with the Buss family. Dr. Jerry Buss was like a Dad to me and is a tremendous loss to (at)Lakers fam." — former Lakers forward Dennis Rodman. Washington Examiner

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss, Dennis Rodman 

Mike Trudell: Oscar Robertson on Dr. Buss final: "The NBA is forever in his debt." Twitter @LakersReporter

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss, Oscar Robertson 

Allan Houston: Thanks Dr Buss for what you did for the game. Thanks for your legacy.. Twitter @ALLAN_HOUSTON

Los Angeles Lakers, Allan Houston, Jerry Buss 

"Dr. Jerry Buss was a cornerstone of the Los Angeles sports community and his name will always be synonymous with his beloved Lakers. It was through his stewardship that the Lakers brought 'Showtime' basketball and numerous championship rings to this great city. Today we mourn the loss and celebrate the life of a man who helped shape the modern landscape of sports in L.A." — Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Washington Examiner

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss, Antonio Villaraigosa 

After all the anger and angst and fury of the immediate post-Shaq era had inspired Kobe Bryant to make a trade demand, Jerry Buss finally called his superstar guard to the owner's home in the Los Angeles hills on an autumn evening in 2007. The Los Angeles Lakers had found a trade for Bryant, but Buss warned him that it wasn't to one of his selected destinations. "Detroit," Buss said. Yahoo! Sports

Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, Trade, Kobe Bryant, Jerry Buss 

The Lakers had agreed to a deal to send Bryant to the Pistons and needed Bryant's approval to waive his no-trade clause. The package included a combination of Detroit's core players and draft picks, sources say. Buss and Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak needed an answer soon, because they refused to let the issue linger into training camp. Yahoo! Sports

Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, Trade, Kobe Bryant, Jerry Buss 

Looking back, Bryant isn't sure it would've mattered whether it was Detroit or Chicago, Dallas or New York. In that moment, in Buss' house in the hills, it washed over Bryant how much staying a Laker for life meant to him, how no matter how dire the state of the franchise seemed, that Buss had a history of restoring the Lakers to championship contention. "It hit me that I didn't really want to walk out on Dr. Buss," Bryant told Yahoo! Sports on Monday. Yahoo! Sports

Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, Trade, Kobe Bryant, Jerry Buss 

David Mayo: #Pistons source acknowledges that the Kobe Bryant trade, involving several players and draft picks, was done and agreed upon in 2007. Twitter @David_Mayo

Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, Trade, Kobe Bryant, Jerry Buss 

Vincent Ellis: FYI, #Pistons source confirms @Adrian Wojnarowski tidbit that they were close to landing Kobe Bryant. Twitter @Vincent_Ellis56

Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, Trade, Kobe Bryant, Jerry Buss 

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: When someone as celebrated and charismatic as Jerry Buss dies, we are reminded of two things. First, just how much one person with vision and strength of will can accomplish. Second, how fragile each of us is, regardless of how powerful we were. Those two things combine to inspire us to reach for the stars, but also to remain with our feet firmly on the ground among our loved ones. Dr. Buss embodied that compassionate entrepreneurial spirit. He strove to reach greater heights without forgetting his community roots. During his stewardship, the Lakers exemplified his personal standards of excellence and became one of the dominant teams in the NBA and a force of good within the community. The man may be gone, but he has made us all better people for knowing him. --- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Facebook.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 

Mike Trudell: The controlling ownership of Dr. Buss has been passed on to a trust on behalf of his six children, managed by Jeanie, Jim & Johnny. Twitter @LakersReporter

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss 

Dwight Howard: I want to share my condolences with the Buss Family as well as my teammates and the Laker family. I had the privilege to meet Dr. Buss when I joined the team. He was an extraordinary man who has left an impact on the sports world. His legacy will never be forgotten. Rest in peace Dr. Buss. Twitter

Los Angeles Lakers, Dwight Howard, Jerry Buss 

Arash Markazi: I had the privilege of watching more than a few games with Jerry Buss in his suite. The scenery was often better than the games. Twitter @ArashMarkazi

Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry Buss