“I was born to bet it all”: Rich Paul who negotiated $4 billion worth deals for NBA players sheds light on ‘gambler’ personality
Rich Paul is one of the most famous sports agents in the world. Paul founded "Klutch" — a sports agency representing numerous elite sports stars. One of them is LeBron James, who has been with Paul for his entire career. Paul has become such a big name within the NBA world that over the years, he's negotiated over $4 billion in contracts for his clients.
Recently, Paul appeared on "Entertainment Tonight," where he answered questions regarding his rapid rise in the sports agent industry. Paul revealed that he approaches his job with a "gambler's mentality," which is something he learned from his father.
"I was a gambler my dad taught me how to shoot Dice and play cards when I was very young," Paul said. "His reason was if I was to get laid off, this skill set would get me from between job and job. That was his reason. He had no idea I would be sitting in the seat I sit in today. But, the gambling aspect of it became my job, and so I was born to bet it all."
Part of being an agent is knowing when to play hardball. Sometimes, that means threatening to walk away from a contract negotiation. That is where the gambler's mentality comes into the equation, as oftentimes, those threats are a bluff.
Rich Paul has had a tough rise to the top
In a recent appearance on ESPN's First Take, Rich Paul revealed the difficulties he's faced on his rise to the top of the agent mountain. Paul cited difficulties being accepted by other agents as one of the more unexpected hurdles he's had to overcome.
"I used to have a profound respect for those in my field," Paul said. "I've lost that respect for a lot of them. Very few that I have that respect for just because of the lack of integrity, the lack of professionalism, and the way they do things. It's just something that when you read that book, you'll understand why I am the way I am."
Paul continued:
"No black agents came to me and said, 'Rich, let me help you, let me show you. Let me help you understand.' What they did was they went into families and talked bad about me. 'Oh he's just a kid, he's just LeBron's friend.'"
Over the last 20 years, Paul has proven his detractors wrong. Not only has Paul remained LeBron James' agent, he's also built a sporting empire that is now one of the most recognizable agencies in North America. Paul's success came despite people not believing in him.
Now, he's in a position to help the next generation of young agents.