Rich Paul’s recent comments on the ‘Game Over Podcast’ have caused a stir in the Lakers‘ community. After proposing a Lakers trade centered around Austin Reaves, he has since decided to walk back the statement in his latest response to the situation.
“My guy Reggie, who is Austin’s agent, we talked. We talked about it, and I’m like, look, Reggie, you’re my man,” said Paul. “I want Austin to know this is not about Austin Reaves because I love the player, love the person. Two, I actually need him to help me with my golf game. So I’m not trying to mess up anything with AR.”
After hearing Paul’s suggestions on a Lakers trade, one of Reaves’ agents approached Paul to confront him face-to-face. That led to a conversation where Rich clarified that it was entirely hypothetical. He seemed almost apologetic as he explained the thought process behind his socrching hot take.
“This was a hypothetical conversation we were having. It was ‘if I was running a team,’ not ‘this is what’s gonna happen.’ Secondly, I believe it’s very complementary to AR because he’s in a team with two future Hall of Famers, and he happens to be the ‘asset’. I’m not trying to mess up anything with AR!”
So while Paul clearly has his own vision for how to run the Lakers, it doesn’t mean he’s pushing to trade Reaves. At least, he felt the need to clarify his position after that podcast. Of course, arguably even more controversial than Paul’s words was a take shared by Max Kellerman. He followed this conversation by suggesting a different Lakers trade; this time, revolving around Luka Doncic.
“If I were the Lakers, I would give serious consideration to moving Luka. If you want to win a championship, I believe your best player needs to be someone who is at least willing to play team defense, like Steph Curry. He’s a great offensive player, not a great defensive player. But he’s a willing team defender, so the Warriors can field championship teams. If your best player isn’t that, it’s very hard to win a championship.”
At 24-14, the Lakers may be competitive in the West right now, but there are concerns about how their performance will carry over into the playoffs. Specifically, Luka Doncic’s shortcomings could be what ends their season. Without a reliable defender, they will struggle to contain elite Western teams like the Thunder, Spurs, Nuggets, and Rockets.
As the February trade deadline approaches, we can expect Rob Pelinka to be active in his pursuit of upgrades, but options are limited. With so much at stake and a rare window of opportunity, the Lakers must tread carefully and avoid any mistakes that could compromise their future. Whether Reaves is a part of that future remains to be seen, but they can’t do any better right now, given his stat line of 26.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game on 50.7% shooting and 36.5% shooting from three this season.
