Die-hard Los Angeles Lakers fans without a doubt know the voice that announces some of their all-time favorite players when they are welcomed to the court during every game's starters introduction. That voice belongs to Lawrence Tanter.
Tanter has announced the names of the likes of Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabar from the Showtime Lakers in the 1980's all the way up to more contemporary names such as Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant of the three-peat Lakers in the 2000's.
The long-time Lakers public-address announcer admitted, however, that while he puts his home team Lakers first, he always added extra spice when announcing now L.A. Lakers forward LeBron James during player introductions back when the superstar visited Los Angeles with the Cleveland Cavaliers or the Miami Heat.
âI always gave him a little flavor because he deserved it,â said Tanter as relayed by Marc Stein of the New York Times. âBut thereâs obviously going to be a little bit more timbre in my voice for a Laker.â
The 68-year old Tanter now has to bring in the entire recipe every single night as LeBron will be suiting up for purple and gold for the next four seasons.
The four-time MVP certainly takes a following wherever he goes. There is always a noticeably larger audience whenever LeBron pays a visit to their arena. Fans know that they are in for a treat with the best player in the world scheduled to put on a show, even at the expense of their own team.
It's always extra special when a player of James' magnitude comes to town â and Tanter knows it too.
