NBA agents are mad at Rich Paul for hosting a Pro Day for his rookies
Another week, another complaint about how Rich Paul and Klutch Sports are conducting their business.
Klutch Sports hosted a live Pro Day for Georgia’s Anthony Edwards and Kentucky’s Tyrese Maxey — two players they’re representing in this upcoming NBA draft.
The Pro Day was nationally televised live on ESPN 2 Thursday night. Other Klutch clients including LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Trae Young and Draymond Green were all in attendance to watch the workout.
That, apparently, is a problem according to other NBA agents.
Other agents are taking issue with some “unwarranted exposure” being given to Edwards and Maxey, according to reporting from the New York Post’s Marc Berman.
According to a source, some agents were unhappy with the setup, feeling it was unwarranted exposure for Paul’s clients, but the NBA let it go on.
That’s the complaint? Give me a break. It sounds like agents are complaining just to complain at this point.
Look, this workout very clearly skirts the rules passed down by the NBA on how teams are supposed to do their pre-draft scouting process. Per the Athletic’s Shams Charania, players are supposed to conduct in-market pre-draft workouts with the NBA market closest to them.
They’ll record a 45-minute workout video, go through medical, strength and agility testing and then get to interview with teams virtually later on.
So this workout broadcast nationally on ESPN gives teams a bit of extra tape on both Edwards and Maxey. That is absolutely an advantage. But there’s also nothing in the NBA’s rules that says this is wrong.
There are better complaints to make here than “unwarranted exposure.” You could argue that certain teams with players in the building (looking at you, Warriors) might be getting an eye on these guys early. Still wouldn’t quite buy that as a problem, but you can argue it.
But unwarranted exposure? That’s a complaint just to complain. And it’s what agents just keep doing with Rich Paul and Klutch.
Just last week an agent anonymously complained in The Athletic about Paul’s relationship with LeBron James. This week, another is complaining about how Paul has clients working out on ESPN 2. Next week, who knows?
This reads as jealousy, as Stephen A. Smith pointed out last week.
The bottom line is that Paul is just the best agent in the game right now. He has the leverage, power and connections to pull off things that have never been done before. And, rightfully, he’s using it.
Instead of complaining about it, other agents should find a way to replicate it.