The Lakers continue to revamp their business operations staff.
The franchise on Tuesday named Yao Williams II as the vice president and head of global partnerships.
The Los Angeles Lakers continued their revamp of their business operations staff with the hiring of Yao Williams II as new VP and head of global partnerships. Getty ImagesWilliams will lead the Lakers global partnerships team, including “partnership sales, business solutions and partnership activation, driving revenue-generating opportunities and creating innovative programming and platforms to maximize brand value”, according to the Lakers.
He most recently co-led global partnerships at Elevate Sports Ventures.
Williams has also worked at the NBA and Manchester City as part of his two decades of experience in global sales and brand partnerships in the sports and entertainment industries.
“I couldn’t be more excited to have Yao Williams join the Lakers business and lead our global partnership team,” Lakers president of business operations Lon Rosen said in a statement. “Yao is an engaging leader with an appetite for innovation that will help drive performance and deliver best-in-class experiences for Lakers partners.”
Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters
California Post News: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, YouTube, WhatsApp, LinkedIn
California Post SportsFacebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, X
California Post Opinion
California Post Newsletters: Sign up here!
California Post App: Download here!
Home delivery: Sign up here!
Page Six Hollywood: Sign up here!
The Lakers have made several changes to their basketball and business operations departments since Mark Walter, the Dodgers controlling owner, officially became the majority owner of the Lakers in October:
- Rosen as the president of business operations (replacing Tim Harris);
- Michael Spetner as the new chief strategy and growth officer (new position);
- Ryan Kantor as the vice president of global partnerships (new role);
- Former Virginia men’s basketball coach Tony Bennett as an NBA draft adviser;
- Rohan Ramadas as an assistant general manager of strategy and data system.
Kantor, who was hired in late April, is still with the franchise even though he and Williams have similar job titles, a source told the California Post. Kantor will lead sponsorship revenue generation, overseeing sales strategy and driving new business across both domestic and international markets.
The Lakers conducted layoffs across multiple departments last week as part of the organization-wide restructuring.
