"He didn't stop the s**t" - Former Knicks forward downplays Rich Paul's influence on LeBron James' rumored Warriors trade
LA Lakers superstar forward LeBron James' agent, Rich Paul, reportedly helped shut down trade talks that would have sent him to the Golden State Warriors. However, ex-New York Knicks forward Kenyon Martin is doubtful Paul has that much influence over the four-time MVP's decisions.
On Feb. 14, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne reported that Golden State "made an unsuccessful bid" to land James before this year's trade deadline. The move would have paired him alongside his longtime rival Steph Curry. However, they added that "neither the Lakers nor James were willing to explore a potential blockbuster."
In his Sunday Substack newsletter, NBA insider Marc Stein provided further reasoning behind James-to-the-Warriors trade talks not gaining traction. According to Stein, Paul "adamantly opposed" his client joining his fourth team and wanted to preserve his reputation.
"Sources say Paul implored both teams to scrap the concept — despite some owner-to-owner dialogue between the Warriors' Joe Lacob and the Lakers' Jeanie Buss and [Draymond] Green's determination to lobby James to push for relocation to the Bay Area — largely because he wanted to insulate James from potential backlash over switching teams for the fourth time in his career," Stein wrote.
However, Martin didn't buy Stein's report. On "Gil's Arena" on Tuesday, the former All-Star highlighted James' immense decision-making power, implying that he has the final say in all decisions regarding his future.
"If LeBron wanted to go to Golden State, you don't f**king think he would have gone to Golden State?" Martin said. "There's nothing that f**king Rich Paul could have said or done.
"If LeBron James wakes up tomorrow morning and is like, 'You know what? F**k this s**t, I wanna go to Golden State.' To be blatantly honest, I think it's some bulls**t. ... He didn't stop the s**t," he continued.
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LeBron James said he had no say in Warriors trade talks
Kenyon Martin may be skeptical about Rich Paul's role in negating trade discussions that would have landed LeBron James in Golden State. However, ahead of the Feb. 18 NBA All-Star Game, James seemingly alluded to letting his representation handle the negotiations.
The four-time champion told TNT's "Inside the NBA" crew that he wasn't even in the loop when the Warriors rumors were circulating.
"It didn't go far at all. I actually heard about it when everybody else heard about it," James said. "Sometimes there's conversations happening behind closed doors that you don't even know about. ... It never even got to me. So, I heard it when the reports dropped as well."
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James famously faced Golden State in four consecutive NBA Finals as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2015 to 2018, winning one of four matchups. So, he likely would have caught flak for joining his ex-rivals, even with the Warriors no longer being a dynasty.
Nevertheless, it appears James wasn't the driving force behind the trade talks, likely contributing to them not escalating very far.
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