Lakers are valued at $643 million

That's up from $607 million last year, according to the latest estimates by Forbes. Only the NY Knicks had a higher valuation. Lakers revenue edged higher, but for whatever reason operating income took a significant hit, from $51 million to $33 million. That number tends to bounce around quite a bit. As you can see from the chart, player expenses keep rising. Some background:

The team hosted 12 playoff games which generated more than $20 million from tickets and concessions after the NBA took their cut of the revenue pie. The Lakers also enjoyed the seventh-highest average attendance in the league (18,997) with the league's highest ticket prices. The Lakers also have one of the richest cable deals in the NBA. Phil Anschutz, who owns the NHL's Kings and has a 27% stake in the Lakers, makes another $10 million or so from non-basketball and hockey events.

The Clippers are another story. Forbes values the franchise at $305 million (that's 22nd in the NBA), and player expenses are $62 million.