LeBron James: Rich Paul's podcast comments not a reflection of me - ESPN

LOS ANGELES — LeBron James cleared the air following the Lakers' 141-116 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday, separating himself from the opinion of his agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, who said that L.A. should trade fan favorite Austin Reaves.

«I think you all know by now, Rich is his own man and what Rich says is not a direct reflection of me and how I feel,» James told ESPN on his way out of Crypto.com Arena. «And I hope people know that. I hope people know that and if they're not sensible to know that, then I don't know what to tell them.»

Paul, on a recent episode of his podcast «Game Over with Max Kellerman and Rich Paul,» said the Lakers should swap Reaves to the Memphis Grizzlies for two-time All-Star big man Jaren Jackson Jr.

«If you're building around Luka [Doncic] going forward, which they are, you need that anchor,» Paul said. «And Jaren doesn't want to be a part of a rebuild.»

Paul presented a scenario in which the Lakers would offer expiring contracts and either their 2031 or 2032 first-round pick to target Jackson and 6-foot-9 Memphis forward GG Jackson as a developmental project. And then he added L.A. would trade Reaves as the centerpiece of the offer, before they would have to decide on offering him a five-year, $241 million max contract extension this summer.

«This comes with a very unemotional attachment because Austin is beloved, which he should be, he's an underdog,» Paul said. «There's a world where you can do what's best for your team, and do what's best for Austin. Because Austin deserves to get paid. Now, I love him as a Laker, but if that was a situation where we're getting balance — because if you put all the money into just the backcourt and then your flexibility is restricted going