Peja Stojakovic Accuses Rich Paul of Blackmail in De'Aaron Fox Trade From Sacramento Kings to San Antonio Spurs
What began as an exciting three-team trade has now turned into a scandal. Peja Stojakovic, the former Sacramento Kings star and executive, has made a shocking claim — he says that agent Rich Paul essentially "blackmailed" the Kings into trading De'Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs, not for the best deal, but to push Klutch Sports' interests.
Peja Stojakovic claims Rich Paul controlled De'Aaron Fox trade destination to the San Antonio Spurs
On the NBA Out of Bounds and NBA Mozzart podcasts, Peja Stojakovic mentioned that Rich Paul gave a "directive" about where De'Aaron Fox should go, essentially "blackmailing the Kings" into sealing the deal with the San Antonio Spurs. Consequently, Sacramento Kings was said to have missed out on the chance to consider offers from other teams, which Peja Stojakovic thinks restricted their negotiation options.
At the center of the deal was a three-team swap in February 2025 that sent De'Aaron Fox and Jordan McLaughlin to the San Antonio Spurs, while Zach LaVine, another Rich Paul client, landed in Sacramento King from the Chicago Bulls, along with multiple future draft selections.
The Kings received three first-round picks (for 2025, 2027 and 2031) plus three seconds, and flipped prospect Sidy Cissoko for center Jonas Valanciunas.
Statistically, De'Aaron Fox had impressive stats in his 17 games with the San Antonio Spurs, averaging 19.7 points, 6.8 assists, and 4.3 rebounds before a finger injury at the end of the season put him out of action.
On the other hand, Zach LaVine joined Sacramento's backcourt, but the team ended up with a 40–42 record and didn't make the playoffs.
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Peja Stojakovic believes that if the Kings had explored more options for trading De'Aaron Fox, they could have gotten a better return than just draft picks and one standout player.
This isn't the first time Rich Paul has faced accusations of manipulating things behind the scenes: critics were quick to blame him during the Anthony Davis trade to the Lakers back in 2019.
Now, the growing claims from a well-respected former executive highlight how influential agents, particularly those representing several high-profile clients, can sway trade dynamics and impact franchise decisions.
Peja Stojakovic's statements make us rethink if NBA trades are just a front-office thing or if agents like Rich Paul actually have a say in the matter. If teams are limited by what their clients want, especially with the risk of losing star players, it seems like the power dynamics in trade discussions could be changing. For Kings fans, the lingering question is: was De'Aaron Fox really worth the price they paid?
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