LOS ANGELES, Feb. 14 (UPI) —
Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss has been hospitalized with an undisclosed illness, team sources told the Los Angeles Times Thursday.
The newspaper said "multiple team personnel" confirmed the 79-year old Buss was in the intensive care unit at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, where he had been visited by several current and former Lakers stars.
Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were reportedly among the Lakers greats flocking to the hospital to visit Buss, who bought the team in 1979 and turned it into one of professional sports’ premiere franchises during his tenure.
The Lakers, recently valued at $1 billion by Forbes Magazine, have won 10 NBA championships under his ownership.
Buss has been hospitalized frequently during the past two years, including an admission for an undisclosed surgery in August, the Times reported.
The normally hands-on owner has not been present at any games this season, the newspaper noted.
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