"[Austin Reaves] knows how I feel about him," LeBron James told ESPN. "All you got to do is look at us on the bench. Me and AR talk every single day. So, AR knows how I feel about him and I hope AR -- or his camp -- don't look at me and think this is words from me are coming through Rich [Paul]."
That is what LeBron had for Dave McMenamin after the Los Angeles Lakers reporter asked the aging star about the comments made by Rich Paul on his podcast. What did James' agent say? Oh, you know, just a suggestion for the Lakers to trade Reaves for Jaren Jackson Jr.
James made it clear to McMenamin, and anyone else who may have been interested, that he and Paul were two different men with two different perspectives. What his agent had to say does not represent him. That is a message Paul has communicated in the past as well.
Even so, McMenamin noted that one of Reaves' agents had a halftime conversation with James' agent about the subject during the Lakers' convincing 141-116 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday. For the Lakers' sake, they need this one to stay between the agents, and them alone.
Lakers can’t afford any cracks between LeBron James and Austin Reaves
As Reaves has continued to grow in his stardom, James has consistently given the vibe of a proud mentor and friend. On the other end, the Lakers guard has always praised just how tremendous his all-time great teammate is — calling him the best to ever do it on multiple occasions.
Austin Reaves on LeBron James:
— BronMuse (@BronMuse) November 17, 2025
"He is, in my opinion, the greatest player to ever touch basketball," Reaves said. "And I guarantee you, if you ask basically our whole team, a lot of the young guys would say he is their favorite player ever. So his presence, his ability to lift… pic.twitter.com/dM6V2HmlBM
The James-Reaves relationship has always appeared to be strong. It does not need whatever Paul has brought to the equation.
It's easy to look at basketball and just trying to piece together a team on X's and O's, but these are all human beings at the end of the day. As such, chemistry can be a very fragile thing.
Reaves and James have always had it on the court. The two play well off each other. LeBron has always been more than happy to defer to his younger star as his ascent has continued as well.
For Paul, why risk affecting that with a distraction involving a trade idea that wouldn't even be as good as he thinks it up to be in his head?
No one is saying this is going to completely rock the boat for James and Reaves. This may just be a point of discomfort that stays between the management. That is what the Lakers better hope, at the very least.