lilfishi22 wrote:Ghost of Kleine wrote:WeekapaugGroove wrote:Absolutely. I'd use the Jones and LeBron friendship to try and join the dark side and become a klutch destination. Better than being an enemy.
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Except that under the reality of still being a smaller market, Paul would still direct the prime pieces to the bigger markets, as it'd mean much a much bigger cut going back to him from endorsement deals, sponsors, etc. And we'd get the leftovers and 2nd hand talent in the end.
Rich Paul and Klutch is cancerous.
Best to try and operate outside of their scope. Because even if you're doing it to ingratiate yourself with him in the hopes of keeping Booker, should he sign with him. Paul would steer him to a bigger market regardless.

That's great right now because we have a choice. What if we don't have that choice? What if a Booker, Ayton or whoever we draft that turns into a semi-star sign with Klutch? Should Booker or Ayton or some other player on our roster sign with Klutch, I'd much rather negotiate from a favorable position of understanding than one in which RP knows we've spurned them at every turn.
I see nothing wrong with having a working relationship with them. I'd rather be friendly with them and have some sway than not at all and seeing each other as enemies. Hate it or not, the reality is that the Klutch client list is getting bigger and they don't have just top talent, they have mid-level guys and lower level guys too now. As I said, it would be unprofessional and potentially hurt what bargaining power we might have if we don't even have a working relationship at all. The NBA is all about relationships
I'm sure there are people you work with in your professional life that you don't particularly like (personally or professionally) but you keep it professional because there may be a time when you need to collaborate or you need to call in a favor.
I get what you're saying man, and to an extent I absolutely agree with you. All I'm saying is not to hold your breath that Paul would do us any favors, even if we catered to his interests.
Paul will never put anything before his ego or personal gain. If Booker or Ayton chooses to sign with Klutch for example, Then the best outcome that we can hope for is to at that point get the very best deal that we can from the inevitable trade.
But until that time comes, our best defense will be in nurturing a very positive relationship with our star players and making their interests a focal point in the majority of our team decisions.
Now again, I'm not saying we should be overtly adversarial. Merely that in any dealings with him IF necessary, We would be best served to exercise caution. and be wary of intentionally pursuing deals with him.
And hopefully also have a backup plan to maintain some degree of leverage.
Finally, I think that in order to reduce the increasing tampering issues, Any verifiable level of evidence of tampering or recruitment by an agency outside of the scheduled dates for free agency,
Should result in that particular agency forfeiting their right to sign that particular player for a period of one year.
And potentially being placed on a probationary term of contractual exclusion, depending on the severity of the occurrence as well as the number of verified violations.
These can be the result of a point system per severity of violation, as well as frequency of occurrence.
The league office will appoint a committee comprised of independent moderators to determine the level of the violation within the confines of the rules.
All findings will be recorded, and made transparent to all teams front offices, owners, etc.
Now obviously this is just an overstated suggestion. As I'm sure that it would never happen. But it would be a nice way to ensure more integrity and parity within the league.