Lakers' Jeanie Buss Says She Received Death Threats During 2022-23 NBA Season

Los Angeles Lakers governor Jeanie Buss was receiving death threats from fans during the 2022-23 season.

Appearing on The Athletic NBA Show podcast, Buss explained the threats came amid the team's slow start.

"I was like, 'I'm not gonna survive this,'" she said. "This is gonna be really rough. I was getting death threats."

One of the sad and unfortunate parts of sports is how over-the-top serious people who watch it can be. It's one thing to root for a team, but anything that denigrates another human being is beyond the pale.

Former Lakers guard Danny Green said he and his fiancée received death threats on social media after he missed a three-pointer late in Game 5 of the 2020 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat.

Earlier this week, Colorado head coach Deion Sanders had to speak out in the wake of Colorado State defensive back Henry Blackburn receiving death threats for a late hit on Buffaloes two-way superstar Travis Hunter in a game on Sept. 16.

The Lakers appeared as if they were going to be one of the worst teams in the NBA at the start of last season. They lost 10 of their first 12 games, leading to speculation that they could be so bad the New Orleans Pelicans might get the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft as a result of the pick swap they owed as a result of the Anthony Davis trade.

Things turned around after that point, as the Lakers won five of their next six games. They made a series of moves ahead of the trade deadline to dramatically alter their roster.

Los Angeles went 42-29 after those first 12 games and beat the Minnesota Timberwolves in the play-in tournament to earn the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference playoffs. The team rode that momentum all the way to the Western Conference Finals before losing to the Denver Nuggets.

Buss has been the Lakers governor since her father, Dr. Jerry Buss, died in 2013. The franchise won the 2019-20 NBA championship under her leadership.