Signing(s): Montrezl Harrell signs with the Lakers (2 years, $19 million)

[Five Alarm Fire]

how is there a conflict of interest?

rich paul is an agent, not the lakers GM

Let's not be obtuse, Rich Paul's relationship with Lebron is well-established. Lebron has an ear in the Lakers front office, as he's had with every team he's played for. Do you really think KCP gets $17M while sitting in a jail cell if he isn't a Rich Paul client? Does Davis force a trade to Los Angeles if that line of communication doesn't exist?

The conflict of interest doesn't legally exist because Lebron is the intermediary between Paul and Pelinka. But let's be honest here, the Lakers have access to his client list at a level that no other team has.

 

[Terry Yake]

He is Lebron's best friend, isn't he?

rob pelinka was kobe's best friend, what's your point?

Let's not be obtuse, Rich Paul's relationship with Lebron is well-established. Lebron has an ear in the Lakers front office, as he's had with every team he's played for. Do you really think KCP gets $17M while sitting in a jail cell if he isn't a Rich Paul client? Does Davis force a trade to Los Angeles if that line of communication doesn't exist?

The conflict of interest doesn't legally exist because Lebron is the intermediary between Paul and Pelinka. But let's be honest here, the Lakers have access to his client list at a level that no other team has.

every star player has an ear in their respective team's FO

have you seen the contracts that below-average players have been getting over the years? not sure why KCP getting his contract is a surprise. paul is damn good at his job. look at the contract he just got jordan clarkson. AD wanted to play with lebron. not sure how them having the same agent has anything to do with that. maybe if they had signed AD as a FA, but they gave up a bunch of young talent for him

if the lakers had "special access" to paul's client list, then ben simmons and eric bledsoe would've been lakers already

 

[Five Alarm Fire]

every star player has an ear in their respective team's FO

have you seen the contracts that below-average players have been getting over the years? not sure why KCP getting his contract is a surprise. paul is damn good at his job. look at the contract he just got jordan clarkson. AD wanted to play with lebron. not sure how them having the same agent has anything to do with that. maybe if they had signed AD as a FA, but they gave up a bunch of young talent for him

if the lakers had "special access" to paul's client list, then ben simmons and eric bledsoe would've been lakers already

At the time the KCP contract was a huge outlier. It was a favor to Klutch as Lebron began looking at houses and basketball academies in LA.

Lol, and having special client access doesn't mean every player will end up with Lebron. When an opportunity presents itself, that's where the leverage comes in to play. Simmons is currently under heavy team control, but would it really surprise anyone if he forced himself out to play with Lebron in 2 years?

 

[Terry Yake]

At the time the KCP contract was a huge outlier. It was a favor to Klutch as Lebron began looking at houses and basketball academies in LA.

Lol, and having special client access doesn't mean every player will end up with Lebron. When an opportunity presents itself, that's where the leverage comes in to play. Simmons is currently under heavy team control, but would it really surprise anyone if he forced himself out to play with Lebron in 2 years?

i mean, look at the contracts that mozgov and deng got from the lakers the year before. it was a lot of money for someone like KCP, but look at how many other middle-low tier players are getting paid, even this year

AD could've still forced his way to LA regardless of who his agent is. not sure how sharing the same agent as lebron played any role when the lakers had to trade for him anyways

 

[Five Alarm Fire]

AD could've still forced his way to LA regardless of who his agent is. not sure how sharing the same agent as lebron played any role when the lakers had to trade for him anyways

The trade return ended up working out for the Pelicans, but establishing a free agency plan with another team two years before expiry royally screws the incumbent team. It completely eliminates the trade market with there only being one destination.

The Lakers could have gotten him for nothing in free agency, but it made sense to not waste another year of Lebron's prime. The Lakers had to give up a ransom because the Pelicans were going to just hold onto him out of spite. Perhaps if Lebron was younger, it would have played out differently. But the fact that the Lakers traded for him doesn't make it any less nefarious for me.

You're right, tampering has become more rampant for other agents in the NBA, but I wonder who started that? If Lebron gets credit for the player empowerment era, he has to take responsibility for the good and the bad.

 

[John Price]

They so mad Lakers getting better and better

Be scared doggy

 

[darko]

They so mad Lakers getting better and better

Be scared doggy

Calm down Wizards fan.

 

[Islay1989]

He’s just straight effort. He will give 150% every time he is on the floor. With that said he is real undersized for a center but doesn’t really play the game of a 4. Defense is questionable but I wouldn’t necessarily call him a liability.

?

Harrell is horrid defensively. Nuggets did whatever the hell they wanted when he was on the floor, and Doc's idiotic refusal to bench him bit them in the ass. He comes from nowhere - because he got burned - for a highlight reel block and then gets burned on a simple switch 5 times in a row.

He can fit in on the Lakers in a pure scoring role because they can insluate him with AD when AD plays PF.

 

[Voight]

Ray Allen was in the twilight of his career and already earned his money. Harrell is 26 and on his first free agent contract. Completely different situations.

Is there an allure of the Lakers and winning a championship? Sure. But he could, and should, have earned more. I don't think you leave money on the table at this point in your career unless you have assurances from your agent that you'll get the money from somewhere else. There's a conflict of interest with Rich Paul and the Lakers, but I guess that's just the reality of the modern NBA.

Counterpoint - its only a 2 year deal and Harrell will have plenty of opportunities to cash in over the next decade.

The trade return ended up working out for the Pelicans, but establishing a free agency plan with another team two years before expiry royally screws the incumbent team. It completely eliminates the trade market with there only being one destination.

The Lakers could have gotten him for nothing in free agency, but it made sense to not waste another year of Lebron's prime. The Lakers had to give up a ransom because the Pelicans were going to just hold onto him out of spite. Perhaps if Lebron was younger, it would have played out differently. But the fact that the Lakers traded for him doesn't make it any less nefarious for me.

You're right, tampering has become more rampant for other agents in the NBA, but I wonder who started that? If Lebron gets credit for the player empowerment era, he has to take responsibility for the good and the bad.

To be fair AD was willing to go to NY or LA. Not his fault BKY was eyeing the top 2 free agents and the Knicks are utterly incompetent. I believe he wanted to play in a big market to build his brand/off court stuff. Hard to do that in a mid tier city like NO, or in a. city that is a strict football town.

 

[Terry Yake]

the lakers also had the best package they were willing to give up for AD