"The GOAT always needs a scapegoat" - Skip Bayless sarcastically lauds LeBron James and Rich Paul for comments towards Rob Pelinka

With the LA Lakers and LeBron James' secret cold-war taking over the headlines, Skip Bayless has stepped in with his own take on the situation. Bayless, who is a vocal critic of the four-time NBA champion, took to Twitter to sarcastically laud King James. In his tweet, the former ESPN commentator wrote:

"Amusing that Rich Paul is now saying no, no, no, we weren't trying to blame Pelinka & we don't want him out. Met with him and told him that. DAMAGE CONTROL, after excuses were planted in concrete for and by LeBron. The "GOAT" always needs a scapegoat. Brilliant maneuver, King."

Is the Rob Pelinka and LeBron James beef on the verge of intensifying?

The past week has been turbulent for the Lakers superstar. James, now 37, has been in the midst of a media storm, claiming that things aren't going smoothly between him and his General Manager. Rob Pelinka, who took over as the Lakers' GM in march 2017, was a prolific agent before his ongoing stint.

He managed the late legend Kobe Bryant and was therefore in a close relationship with the gold and purple management and upper echeleon. As per reports, his tussle with LeBron James began after Klutch Sports' futile attempt to acquire John Wall from the Houston Rockets. Rich Paul, founder of Kltuch Sports, is both Wall and James' agent.

Pelinka's refusal to trade Russell Westbrook back to Houston and LBJ's subsequent comments centered around the chances of leaving the franchise birthed an obvious power struggle. James' public acceptance of the possibility of playing alongside his son Bronny James on another team has also been treated as a sign of disloyalty.

Keyshawn Johnson, while on his podcast, had recently anticipated that Jeanie Buss, president of the team, would take Pelinka's side in the feud.

Johnson: "Jeanie is a very loyal individual, I think her loyalty will side with Rob Pelinka before it does an aging LeBron James despite winning a NBA title just two years ago. It's just the reality of it.

Adrian Wojnarowski later reported through an article that Rich Paul met with Jeanie and Pelinka in the aftermath of LeBron's vocal comments over the possibility of joining Cleveland and playing alongside his son in a different team.

Woj wrote: "In the aftermath of LeBron James' public comments on a possible return to Cleveland and media reports describing his agency's displeasure with the organization, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul met with Lakers owner Jeanie Buss and general manager Rob Pelinka on Tuesday, insisting that there's no movement underway to seek management changes and that he believes there's a shared accountability for the franchise's disappointing season."