The smartest move Rob Pelinka made as VP of Basketball Operations and General Manager for the Los Angeles Lakers was to forge an alliance with Rich Paul and the Klutch Sports Group, who represent James and Davis.
With LeBron James’ seemingly never-ending career approaching its end, the biggest mistake Pelinka and the Lakers could make would be to assume the Klutch alliance was no longer important and end the partnership. Ending a unique advantageous relationship that brought the Lakers two superstars and their 17th NBA championship would be a foolhardy move considering Klutch Sports is on the way to being the #1 agency in the NBA.
Right now, whether the Lakers should end their alliance with Rich Paul and Klutch Sports since LeBron James is nearing retirement has become the most controversial NSFW NBA topic dominating sports blogs and bars. Many supporters of ending the partnership blame LeBron James and Anthony Davis for the unnecessary season-killing trade for Russell Westbrook and are worried about LeBron bolting the Lakers like the Cavs.
What those critics are ignoring is the Klutch relationship is about a lot more than just LeBron James. Rich Paul is also the agent for Anthony Davis and taking a dramatic step like trading LeBron could end up alienating AD. Right now, Klutch has 31 NBA players under contract for total salaries of $389,208,200, including 5 All-Stars and two players with max contracts. Jeff Schwartz is only agent with more players, total salaries, or All-Stars.
Klutch Sports just signed Zach LaVine to join their stable of NBA stars that includes LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Ben Simmons, Draymond Green, Lonzo Ball, Trae Young, Miles Bridges, Malik Beasley, and Darius Garland. Having potential access to Klutch Sports valuable portfolio of players is an advantage the Lakers should treasure and carefully manage. It’s an edge no other NBA team has and could directly contribute to future championships.
One of the advantages for the Lakers of having an alliance with Klutch Sports is the insight it gives Rob Pelinka and the Lakers front office and scouting department when it comes to player evaluation, a Klutch strength. Rich Paul and Klutch Sports Group have become champions of NBA player empowerment and movement and that is not like to stop in the future. At some point, Klutch is going to make another move to help the Lakers.
It could even happen this summer with Zach LaVine, an unrestricted free agent, whom Klutch Sports could have demand a sign-and-trade to the Los Angeles Lakers or he will sign elsewhere and the Bulls will get nothing. Rich is not afraid to be a trend setting in getting his clients the best deals with the best teams. Pairing LaVine with James and Davis would certainly enhance the brand of the Lakers as well as the three Kutch Sports Group superstars.
The relationship between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Klutch Sports Group has been a point of contention with other NBA teams and agents, who say the relationship gives the Lakers an unfair competitive advantage. The league so far has not been able to find a legal basis for preventing the Lakers and Klutch collaboration. Nor has any other NBA team been able to forge a similar relationship with any of Klutch Sports competitors.
The smartest move Pelinka can make this summer is make sure to embrace and reinforce the Los Angeles Lakers’ close alliance with the Klutch Sports Group to help the purple and gold win more NBA championships.
Lakers appear to be willing to work with LeBron regardless of status of extension, which is smarter than making trade threats or moves to alienate LeBron. Instead, the Lakers appear ready to move forward when free agency start to rebuild the starting lineup and roster around LeBron and AD as if LeBron were going to sign the extension.
This hopefully is a signa the extension is not going to be an issue as both the player and the team are moving forward following without discussing the extension until 8/4 as per the tampering rules. I would read this as saying they’ve already agreed on the extension come Aug 4th.
Again, they’ll keep Lebron only to remain (barely) relevant in the NBA world. Lebron/AD keeps them on the national radar and a newsworthy team, until it all goes down like it has in every non-bubble season. Every non-Laker/non-Lebron fan enjoys their taste of schadenfreude until it just becomes pathetic. Or even worse, apathetic. Seems like Jeannie is happy to just stay in the national discussion moreso than make the right moves to get back to the mountaintop as quickly as possible. I’m hoping Lebron and his yes man actually do care about winning another for the legacy and force their way out, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. Look forward to another season of hoping everything just breaks right, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up.
I see this sword as cutting two ways. While it’s no coincidence that this…arrangement…came from our initial signing of LeBron it was cemented when we enabled Anthony Davis and Klutch to force his way out of New Orleans. While that enabled the Lakers to win a ring it seemingly has come with some notion of fealty. That we somehow owe a banner to Klutch sports which is absurd and asinine. Yes, LeBron and AD were the best players on that team but I didn’t see Rich Paul catch a pass or Maverick Carter take a shot or anyone else who works for Klutch on the floor when the confetti fell in the Bubble.
There’s an actual timeline to this series of events that sheds actual logic on both the beginning and present of this “relationship”. Has little to do with Klutch at the beginning., actually, other than they rep The King. LeBron chose the Lakers in free agency when Magic was still President and the face of the franchise, he was coming here to be close to his family and film Space Jam. Maybe he saw a world where we traded for someone like AD but I do think he was intrigued with the Lakers as they were built at the time and the record they assembled when he was healthy is all you need to look at to confirm that.
Anthony Davis had wanted out of NOLA pretty much since Boogie’s Achilles injury. Maybe even before that. He wanted to play on a bigger stage and couldn’t wait until his deal was up to do so. Let’s all have a collective “Ahhhhhh, poor baby” for AD. Enter the Lakers with an injured LeBron and a host of young players and (at the time) draft picks). Not to be bullied by player or outsider the Pelicans waited until the summer to make a deal for Davis and got some good players in the doing. Proof is in the pudding as AD and LeBron were unable to get to the playoffs and the Pelicans, without Zion, were. Did Klutch help facilitate that deal with it’s strong arm tactics? Yes, but it also left a mark on the Laker franchise that won’t go away any time soon.
Now all of the above is semi-justifiable in the name of winning. The summer we traded for AD we also signed veteran and perennial playoff player Danny Green, hoops savant Rajon Rondo, locker room glue guy Jared Dudley and found diamond in the rough Alex Caruso while holding onto Kyle Kuzma and KCP. After a back-asswards coaching search conducted by Rob Pelinka (after Magic’s abrupt, televised departure from his role the season prior) we landed on Frank Vogel who cobbled together a solid defense and got out of LeBron’s way on offense. Result: banner.
So, really, Klutch has had one minute aspect in helping us win the title which was the least honorable of them all: strong arming a player out of a small market team before his deal was up and he could leave organically in free agency. Other than that? Klutch’s contributions to anything the Lakers have done is equal to diddle squat.
So, thanks but no thanks to getting in deeper with the Klutch mob. We don’t need to further sully the franchise to win, that’s been done enough and we have some work to do in getting it undone, in my opinion. If LaVine and Klutch want to try and strong arm the Chicago Bulls I think we’ll see a very different turn of events and one that might start to further erode the player/organization “peace” we enjoy now.
Player movement is great but so is honoring the deal you signed. Everyone gets sick of a job, comes with being human. But to endorse an NBA where a fickle moment here or a bad turn of events there kicks off an exodus from this team or that with a bunch of whining from millionaires? No thanks, that’s not sports that’s a tele novella, or worse politics, and I can watch that with or without the English subtitles. Frankly, there has been a little too much player catering in the NBA. It’s nigh impossible to build a team that lasts and there’s no better experiment to watch right now than the Grizzlies and Pelicans. What happens with Zion and NOLA vs. what happens in Memphis will be quite interesting to see unfold.
Glad to see you were so inspired to respond. Such a bias against Rich Paul and Klutch Sports. We wouldn’t have AD or #17 were it not for Klutch forcing the trade of AD to the Lakers. Yet, you want to end the relationship?
Would you change your mind if the Lakers were able to sign Zach LaVine as a player or Nick Nurse as head coach? Are you ready to trade both LeBron and AD? The alliance with Klutch helped us win #17 and has not hurt us in any situation.
We won’t be able to without strong arm tactics which aren’t likely to work since we have naught but crap to offer.
Not really, also don’t buy the whole narrative that we wouldn’t have won #17 w/o AD and Klutch. Obviously we won #17 in circumstances that will never be replicated so it’s a biiiiig stretch to say that we’ve won anything with AD the actual NBA player. If anything we’ve just served as his personal rehab station. Defense won that championship as much as antying else and that comes down to the actual team, not a couple players.
I don’t see LBJ and AD winning another title in LA based on how the future was mortaged to make last season happen. Going further down the road to placate the whole mess that comes with them is bad for business, bad for the future and will just make it harder for those running things to accept reality. We’re not a playoff team right now. Excuses can be found everywhere, tough leaders take the hit on the chin and reload in a manner that makes some semblance of sense, does that feel like what’s happening right now? No.
We don’t have what the Bulls want in a trade, ditching a 1st rounder for Nick Nurse won’t be enough, and would probbaly have to take on a bad deal, as well. Toss in Reaves or some other terrible idea. All of these flights of fancy are lovely for the stretch before the playoffs end but should not really be taken very seriously. We’re just as likely to have Westbrook on the roster as not next season, should really look at some younger coaches and not retreads and we should be looking at working the Charlotte trade to the max since it feels like the best offer we might (miiiiight) get for Russ. If they hire Mike D’Antoni I can all but guarantee that deal comes off the theory table. Russ ain’t a Mike D’Antoni kind of PG.
I find it interesting that you both acknowledge that the Bubble title was won in a way that can never be replicated and then turn around and heap the priase on the entity that, outside of the faces on the screens on the wall in the Bubble, had the least to do with any of it. You’re generally more imaginative and outside-the-box with your ideas but this “go all in on Klutch!” is one of the…I dunno..lazier ones? Or just doesn’t really feel well-reasoned because it kind of ignores a lot of the facts that happened. At any rate, I wholly disagree on the idea that we will impriove our lot by limiting our agency to options to one, or a few. Do they rep great players? Yes, and we should prusue the players that we can. Do we need to sell our souls to Rich Paul to make the franchise playoff worthy?
No.
And after the last 2 seasons every idea should be on the table. That’s what a good franchise would do. They wouldn’t cow to a player, they’d work with them…without leaking it to the media or referrencing it like a child asking for praise after going potty like Rob does. “I talked to LeBron and AD!” It’s irksome. Own your choices, Rob, don’t just be a husk or a placeholder.
There isn’t a realistic way that Klutch can force a Levin trade to the Lakers. First there are not many winning teams that can sign him as a free agent. Maybe the Griz? There are only two trades the Lakers could make with the Bulls. AD which won’t happen or Westbrook. What do the Griz get? Perhaps two distant picks? Would they really take on Westbrooks 47mil for that? That’s 23.5 mil for each pick. If I’m the Bulls I pass on that.