LeBron James’ twilight years with the Los Angeles Lakers have been nothing short of abnormal.
In a new turn of events, during Los Angeles’ 120-114 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday, the broadcast caught James’ super agent Rich Paul speaking intently to the 41-year-old during a brief dead ball.
Paul, and Klutch Sports Group for that matter, haven’t hesitated in operating by their own standards in their relationship with the franchise, which is why the otherwise odd scene of a player talking to his agent during a live game didn’t spark much controversy.
What Paul told LeBron
In his latest episode of the “Game Over Podcast” with Max Kellerman, Paul revealed what he was telling his prized client.
“When I catch eye contact with my guys, if they have an opportunity they’ll come over,” Paul said. So, ‘Bron came over and I was telling him what I saw and if he saw the same thing. I was like, ‘If you catch the ball with a live dribble, it’ll bring two and get Luka off the ball for a second.’
”Then we talked with four minutes to go, ‘I like you and Luka in the P&R. He was like, ‘You like 5 (Deandre Ayton)?’ And I said, ‘No, 77 (Doncic).’ If you watch at the end they were running the ball screen.”
The Lakers were neck-and-neck with the Grizzlies down the stretch of the fourth quarter and added yet another “clutch” win to their season. Los Angeles is 12-0 in clutch games. All of its losses have been by at least 10 points.
Despite what appears to be a successful early season, tensions between James, Klutch and Paul and the Lakers are particularly high. The 23-year veteran opted into the final year of his two-year extension, and the $52.6 million he’s taking up on the cap sheet has been a point of contention in regards to Los Angeles’ roster construction.
Will James retire? Will the Lakers trade him in his 23rd season? Or will James just take a farewell tour to another franchise? Many of these uncomfortable questions are only being overshadowed by a unique season alongside Luke Doncic.