The Los Angeles Lakers continued reshaping their organizational structure on Tuesday, announcing the hiring of Yao Williams II as Vice President and Head of Global Partnerships.
The #Lakers are adding Yao Williams II as VP and head of global partnerships pic.twitter.com/tQlaIUnjyx
— Carlos Yak (@CarlosYakJr) June 2, 2026
Williams will lead the Lakers' global partnerships department, overseeing sponsorship sales and partner relationships.
His focus will be on bringing in new business opportunities and creating programs that help grow the Lakers' brand.
The move comes just one week after the Lakers named Rohan Ramadas assistant general manager of strategy and data systems, signaling the organization's continued efforts to strengthen both its basketball and business operations heading into next season.
"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."
Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
Mar 12, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers majority owner Mark Walter and team executive Jeannie Buss in attendance at Crypto.com Arena.
Williams arrives in L.A. with nearly two decades of experience in global sales and brand partnerships across the sports and entertainment industries.
Most recently, Williams co-led global partnerships at Elevate Sports Ventures, where he worked on sponsorship and revenue-generation initiatives across professional sports.
Before that, he held positions with both the NBA and Manchester City Football Club, gaining experience with two globally recognized brands known for their expansive international reach. He is also a graduate of Miami University in Ohio, earning a Master of Education in Sports Management from Cleveland State University.
While Ramadas was brought in to help oversee analytics and strategic initiatives on the basketball side, Williams will now take charge of growing the franchise's business partnerships and global commercial opportunities.
The additions of Ramadas and Williams come after Rob Pelinka said at the end of the season that the organization planned to expand its front office and operational resources heading into next year.