"Could you please do me a favor and quote me" - Rich Paul quashes reports which suggest he was in favor of a Russell Westbrook-John Wall trade

The NBA trade deadline passed on 10 February 2022 and Russell Westbrook is still with the LA Lakers. Leading up to the deadline, there was more than enough speculation that Westbrook would certainly be traded by the Lakers in exchange for John Wall.

Interestingly, Wall hasn't played a single game for the Houston Rockets this season. When no trade for the two point guards materialized, there were rumors that Klutch Sports Group, the agency associated with LeBron James, was not happy about it.

However, Rich Paul, a close friend of James and founder of Klutch Sports Group, has emphatically denied playing a part in wanting the Lakers to trade Westbrook. As per longtime NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith, who spoke on the matter on ESPN's First Take:

"Rich Paul called me yesterday and asked me to quote him on the story about him and Klutch Sports and essentially them wanting the Lakers to trade Russell Westbrook and a first-round pick to Houston for John Wall."

Smith added:

"He wanted me to state emphatically that there was absolutely, positively no truth to that whatsoever. He never did that. He did not do that. The people who wrote the story never contacted him to get any kind of perspective from him on that."

He concluded:

"It is an absolute lie and he said, 'Could you please do me a favor and quote me and tell the world that I specifically said that’s a damn lie. It’s no truth. It never happened.'"

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"LeBron James doesn't get off the hook here" - Stephen A. Smith suggests James must shoulder blame for Russell Westbrook saga

After stating what Rich Paul told him to quash the rumors involving Klutch Sports, Westbrook and the Lakers, Smith then gave his own view on the matter. His take was a firm indictment of LeBron James as he said:

"LeBron James isn't off the hook here... LeBron cannot be absolved from this. You had the opportunity to get Buddy Hield, you went with Westbrook. You might have had an opportunity to get DeMar DeRozan, you went with Westbrook. LeBron James ain't innocent in that."

Smith went on to say:

"You [James] had something to do with the formulation of this roster. We can point to Rob Pelinka all we want to and it should be accurate to some degree because you are the GM. Magic Johnson is not there any longer... And now it's on you [Pelinka], alongwith Linda and Kurt Rambis and this is what has been going on in LA."

He concluded:

"So they can't be innocent... but I'm not going to sit here and put it all on their shoulders and act like LeBron James had nothing to do with it."

Russell Westbrook has struggled to perform for the Lakers so far this season, with the franchise currently holding a 27-31 record. He has averaged 18.3 ppg, 7.8 rpb and 7.5 apg in the ongoing campaign.