Speaking about his top client in Monday’s episode of his Game Over podcast with Max Kellerman, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports said LeBron James is “not going to be rushed” into making a decision on his next team, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
“I think it’s important for people to understand, we’re not making this about attention and a spectacle,” Paul said, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “It’s not about a ‘Decision’ or anything like that. He has a choice to make. He has a business choice to make. We’re not going to sit here and allow someone else to decide when he makes that decision or that choice.
“It’s a business choice that he’s making. And I think as an athlete, why is it that an athlete has to rush his choice? Because from a business perspective, you are making the choice between jobs, high-level jobs. And you’ve earned the right.”
The Cavaliers, Heat, Sixers, Warriors, and Timberwolves are viewed as the top contenders for James, with ESPN’s Shams Charania having stated multiple times in the past couple weeks that he believes the focus has been on the three Eastern Conference clubs.
However, Paul, James, and the rest of LeBron’s camp have been tight-lipped throughout the process, offering few hints about which team he’ll choose — or even when that announcement will come.
“These people don’t know anything,” Paul said of those predicting James’ decision is imminent. “I don’t know when his choice is going to be made, but it could be 48 seconds (from now). It could be 48 minutes. I don’t know. Again, you can’t make somebody know something that they don’t know.”
Charania has also reported that James has received all the information he needs to make a decision and that he’s not waiting on additional pitches from interested teams. Paul confirmed as much in Monday’s podcast.
“There have been several people call and say, ‘Hey, Rich, is there anything more we should be doing, we could be doing?'” Paul said. “And my answer is, ‘No. We don’t need you to go above and beyond about anything. We understand it. It’s clear. All the messages have been sent. We get it.’ And, again, there’s roster spots that’s not filled. If they want to fill their roster spots, we’re not saying don’t fill your roster spots. We’re not.”
While Paul made it clear that James will be the one making the decision on his next team, he said he has advised the four-time MVP to think each possibility through carefully and be wary of picking the situation that looks best on paper.
“Because the paper in July is different than when you get into training camp, when you get into January,” Paul said. “There’s a lot of things to think through. Everything looks good on paper. And I think that a lot of times, as an athlete, you naturally have this confidence that I can change everything and anything, and fix this and fix that in July.
“But when the battle actually starts, you start to see tendencies. You start to see patterns. You start to see how things operate on a daily basis. And it’s tough to tell. It’s tough to tell from this seat. You actually have to get in the mud and get your boots dirty.
“… I’m just saying you have to really take your time and think things through. Because, again, there’s no perfect situation, which you understand. In life there’s no perfect situation. But my thing is I’d rather have no expectation and then get a surprise than have all this expectation and then be disappointed.”
It has been nearly three weeks since free agency began, and James’ decision is one of the last major dominoes to fall this offseason. As Kellerman pointed out to Paul, the protracted timeline has led some fans and league observers to argue that James “loves the attention” and speculate that he’s intentionally dragging out a decision he’s already made. The Klutch Sports CEO scoffed at that notion.
“It’s the lowest hanging fruit for when you don’t have the information,” Paul said. “That’s just what it is.”