Klutch Sports Group CEO Rich Paul has angered Los Angeles Lakers fans with his recent comments regarding Austin Reaves. Paul urged the Lakers to trade Reaves for Memphis Grizzlies big man Jaren Jackson Jr. on his Game Over podcast, and that hasn’t gone down well with the fanbase. They have called him out on X.
“Thank god this idiot is not part of the Lakers,” one Lakers fan bluntly called Paul an idiot.
“The more he talks about actual hoop, the more credibility he loses,” another believes that Paul is losing more and more credibility with his takes on this podcast.
“Yes, because then we can have 2 bigs that can’t rebound, what a great team that would be,” a Lakers fan points out an issue with acquiring Jackson.
“Yeah, it’s so obvious that Rich Paul wants Reaves out of LA. He doesn’t want them to pay him because he wants them to pay LeBron [James] instead,” one believes Paul is playing dirty tricks here.
“If you’re Austin Reaves, your teammate’s agent publicly says he would trade you for Ja. That agent is LeBron’s yes man, so essentially, Bron would trade you. Tell me this s*** isn’t toxic,” a fan thinks Paul is causing toxicity.
“Rich Paul has to be smoking those packs he used to sell. He has done nothing but pillow talk and give the worst takes since starting this podcast,” a fan hasn’t liked much of what Paul has had to say on this podcast.
This isn’t the first time that Paul, LeBron James‘ agent, has rubbed Lakers fans the wrong way. He previously stated that Reaves is in the same tier as Miami Heat guard Norman Powell. That wasn’t an insult, but it did come across that way to some.
Reaves is averaging 26.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game in 2025-26 while shooting 50.7% from the field. The 27-year-old has been phenomenal and looks set for a big payday in the summer. On the odd chance that the Lakers don’t give him a good enough deal, he’d have plenty of other options. You’d imagine they’ll keep him, though.
As for a Jackson trade, it would definitely help in one area. The Lakers are a bad defensive team, and the 26-year-old is one of the better defensive bigs in the NBA (won DPOY in 2023).
Jackson is averaging 18.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 0.9 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game for the Grizzlies in 2025-26. He spaces the floor too, as he is shooting 36.1% from three.
Jackson isn’t a good rebounder, though, and that is a big issue. Reaves is easily the Lakers’ best trade chip, putting James and Luka Doncic aside, and they’d be better off pursuing someone better if they do decide to part ways.
