Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss has been hospitalized with cancer, according to a report by the Los Angeles Times on Thursday.

Buss, 79, has spent time in the intensive care unit at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, according to the Times. Buss' son, Jim,, was quoted saying his father was "doing fine," while several current and former Lakers players, including Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson, paid Buss a visit.

''Dr. Jerry Buss, thinking about u & wish I could be there, get well soon,'' former Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal tweeted Thursday. ''I cant wait 2 see u on 4/2/13 #LoveYou.''

The Lakers will retire O'Neal's No. 34 jersey on April 2.

Buss has been hospitalized several times in recent years, including an incident last July for dehydration. He has also been treated for blood clots in his legs in December of 2011.

The Lakers won five titles in nine years during the 1980s, earning a reputation as basketball's most exciting team with their glamorous Showtime style led by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Johnson, who was Buss' first draft pick. O'Neal and Bryant then led the Lakers to a threepeat from 2000-02 under coach Phil Jackson before Bryant and Pau Gasol won two more titles in 2009 and 2010.

He was also deeply involved with the Lakers' most recent major moves, including the acquisitions of Steve Nash and Dwight Howard last summer, along with the firing of coach Mike Brown and the hiring of Mike D'Antoni early this season.