Robert Todd Pelinka Jr. is an American basketball executive, lawyer, sports agent, and former college basketball player from Lake Bluff, Illinois in the North Shore of the Chicago metropolitan area. Pelinka is currently the vice president of basketball operations and general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Before joining the Lakers, he was Kobe Bryant's agent and president and CEO of The Landmark Sports Agency, LLC. Pelinka has represented many players who have been top-14 picks since the 2003 NBA draft, including two at the 2010 NBA draft and second-overall 2011 NBA draft selection Derrick Williams. In the 2012 NBA draft, Pelinka represented Dion Waiters and Andre Drummond, who were selected 4th and 9th overall, respectively. Pelinka was formerly Kevin Durant's agent; he resigned as Carlos Boozer's agent following a controversy in which Boozer signed a contract with the Utah Jazz after allegedly promising to re-sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Pelinka played basketball for Lake Forest High School, earning All-American honors. As a junior, he led Lake Forest High School to its first conference championship. Entering his senior season, Pelinka was overlooked by many Division I scouts and recruiters. However, his MVP performance in a four-game tournament, where he made all 42 of his free throws, and his impressive season statistics enabled him to become a highly recruited athlete by the end of his senior year. He was selected to several regional all-star lists and to play on several regional all-star teams as a senior.
He was recruited by the University of Michigan, where he has the distinction of being the only person in school history to have been a member of three National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Final Four teams: the 1988–89 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Champion Wolverines basketball team as well as both the 1991–92 and the 1992–93 national championship runners-up, which were best remembered as the Fab Five teams. Pelinka holds a Juris Doctor cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School (1996) and Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business (1993). Pelinka was also named the 1993 NCAA Male Walter Byers Scholar Athlete of the Year.
