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The LAKERS Broadcast Team
XTRA SPORTS AM 570 SHOWS YOU THE MONEY - KROQ'S MATT "MONEY" SMITH JOINS XTRA SPORTS AND THE LAKERS BROADCAST TEAM
LOS ANGELES - XTRA Sports AM 570 announced today the addition of Matt "Money" Smith to the Lakers Broadcast team. Money begins his dream job with the Lakers Radio Network as the 2005-2006 season begins.
Money joins XTRA Sports AM 570 after successful experiences at DreamWorks, and most recently as the sports voice for the KROQ morning show featuring Kevin and Bean. "I've been associated with KROQ for 11 years. I started (here) when I was in college answering phones, and as sad as it is to leave a group of people I consider family, it's equally exciting to work with a franchise like the Lakers and the dominant Sports radio station in Los Angeles - XTRA Sports AM 570."
Spero Dedes - The Los Angeles Lakers have hired Spero Dedes to a multi-year contract as the team's new radio play-by-play voice. He'll join former Laker, and current color analyst, Mychal Thompson on broadcasts that will be carried on XTRA Sports 570.
"I am elated to join the Lakers organization," said Dedes. "This is one of the great jobs in all of sports and a tremendous franchise. I look forward to bringing the action into the homes and cars of Lakers fans throughout Southern California."
At 26, Spero has already worked play-by-play assignments for 3 of the 4 major television networks in the country.
Dedes was most recently the host of NBA TV's Hardwood Classics, and the NBA "Insiders" -- a nightly, live, 60-minute interview program dealing with "everything NBA." For the past two seasons, Dedes has handled NBA TV's First Round Playoff play-by-play duties as well.
Dedes, has served as the voice of the YES Network's collegiate sports coverage (football and basketball), and served as a fill in as YES' play-by-play announcer on Nets' telecasts behind Ian Eagle and as a studio host for the Yankees' and Nets' pre and postgame shows.
Dedes has been a play-by-play voice on CBS' coverage of NCAA men's college basketball and Westwood One's coverage of NCAA football and basketball. He has also called NFL action on FOX, and this past August was in Athens as a reporter/play-by-play announcer on NBC's coverage of the 2004 Summer Olympics.
Dedes, 26, began his broadcasting career at WFAN Radio in New York, where he handled 20/20 updates and served as the Jets' beat reporter. Also in 2001, Dedes was the radio voice of the Arena Football League's New Jersey Gladiators, working alongside WFAN's NFL expert, Steve Cohen.
The Paramus, N.J., native and 2001 Fordham graduate was the inaugural recipient of the Marty Glickman Award, given to the Fordham announcer who best exemplifies the standards set by the late sports broadcasting icon.
Mychal Thompson, the first overall selection in the 1978 NBA draft, played 12 seasons with the Portland Trailblazers, San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Lakers. He was part of the Lakers back-to-back championship teams in 1986-87 and 1987-88.
In addition to being a former athlete, Thompson brings over 11 years of radio and television experience to the show. He is the radio analyst for the Lakers. Before coming to the Lakers broadcast team, he had been the television analyst for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Prior to that, Thompson co-hosted "The Brothers in the Booth", a radio show in Portland, Oregon, with Kermit Washington and worked with the Seattle SuperSonics, Vancouver Grizzles and Portland Trailblazers as a TV color analyst. Thompson is a native of the Bahamas and serves as Sports Ambassador to the Bahamas with former Lakers forward Rick Fox.
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