With Billionaire LeBron James Often Being Vocal About Las Vegas Dream, Childhood Friend Rich Paul Is Already Seeking a Major Role

LeBron James has gained a massive following for his stellar work in the NBA. This has led to him earning more than $400 million dollars over the course of his career. LeBron’s smart investments in various industries have increased his net worth to $1 billion dollars. Rich Paul, LeBron’s agent, and close friend, has helped him amass his massive wealth by skillfully negotiating contracts that handed LeBron all the power.

LeBron has been vocal about the prospect of him bidding for an NBA expansion franchise based in Las Vegas. But his agent and childhood friend, Rich Paul, isn’t looking to follow LeBron into ownership.

Rich Paul Focused on his Business

Rich Paul has become one of the most influential people of the modern NBA. His agency, Klutch Sports Group has NBA superstars like LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Draymond Green as their clients. Paul has also expanded his influence in the NFL with players like Jalen Hurts, Chase Young and Miles Garrett signed to his agency. Paul has brokered deals worth $400 million dollars for LeBron over his established career. Paul and LeBron share a very close bond, as they have known each other for over two decades.

LeBron has been very vocal about his wish to own an NBA franchise based in Las Vegas. This has led to speculations that Paul also might invest in the expansion franchise. But Paul has put an end to all the speculation, as he made an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show, in which Paul rebuffed all the speculation of him investing in a team. He said, “I don’t want to own a team. That will hinder me. I plan on diversifying my portfolio and attaching different verticals to the business. I don’t have enough money to own a team. So let’s just start there”.

NBA’s Expansion Efforts

With interest growing in basketball and the NBA, officials are looking to expand the current pool of teams from thirty to thirty-two. The NBA’s current media rights deal ends after the 2024-25 season. According to CNBC, the early talk in NBA circles is that the league could seek as much as $75 billion in media rights fees in its next negotiations.

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With the additional windfall of the TV revenue, the NBA hopes to expand the league to thirty-two teams. The early frontrunners for the expansion teams are Las Vegas and Seattle, but cities like Vancouver and Mexico City are also in the mix. Las Vegas has already hosted the NBA Summer League as well as some NBA preseason games.

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