"Anybody can be traded" - LeBron James' agent Rich Paul makes feelings clear on shocking Luka Doncic-AD trade

Rich Paul, the agent of LA Lakers star LeBron James, shared his two cents on the blockbuster deal that landed his client a new teammate, five-time All-NBA first-team selection Luka Doncic.

Paul appeared on "Gil's Arena" and discussed the high-profile deal that sent Doncic to LA to pair up with James, arguably Paul's most notable client. Paul said it's been one of the busiest trade deadlines he's been part of. The biggest trade involved another Klutch Sports client, Anthony Davis.

"Look... obviously, anybody can be traded," Paul said (Timestamp: 30:22). "We see that, right?"

The sports agent agreed with the hosts when they mentioned that only a handful of players can't be traded due to their contracts having a no-trade clause.

"Even if you have that, and somebody is saying they want to trade you, even if you have that restriction, you still don't feel warned at that point because you know they want to trade you," Paul said (Timestamp: 30:38). "So, it don't matter. ... It may protect you from going somewhere you don't wanna go but, in this case, you still going to be traded or you still feel unwanted."

Paul said that having the no-trade clause may not matter as teams will eventually move the player. He doubled down on the notion that the NBA is a business.

"It's business at the end of the day," Paul said (Timestamp: 31:04). "The contracts travel... your salary travel too. So, that's part of it."

The latest episode of "Gil's Arena" was uploaded on YouTube on Tuesday but was filmed at the Emporium Arcade Bar in San Francisco during the 2025 All-Star festivities last weekend. The podcast is hosted by former NBA players Gilbert Arenas, Nick Young, Kenyon Martin and Josiah Johnson.

LeBron James' agent Rich Paul admits he didn't know about the blockbuster trade before it happened

LeBron James' longtime agent, Rich Paul, admitted being "shocked" like the rest of the basketball world when he learned about the blockbuster Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis trade.

In Tuesday's "Gil's Arena" episode uploaded on YouTube, Paul said that it was the one time that he didn't know about the trade before it happened.

"99.9% of the time, I'm gonna know what's going on. The one time I didn't was the one time we all didn't, per se, know what was going on," Paul said (Timestamp: 28:56).

"A shock to everybody, who was in it was a shock, right? I always knew the affinity that was had for AD from Nico's perspective. So, the destination wasn't really a shock," Paul said (Timestamp: 29:06). "The timing of it was a shock and obviously who was involved was a shock."

The sports agent further said that he is glad that many people didn't know about the trade as it might not have pushed through had more people known.

Paul founded the sports agency Klutch Sports Group in 2012 and is currently its CEO. One of his first clients is LeBron James, a longtime friend. Some of Paul's clients moved at this year's NBA trade deadline, including Brandon Ingram to the Toronto Raptors, De'Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs, and Zach LaVine to the Sacramento Kings.