Voice of the Lakers' Announces Retirement, PA Announcer Lawrence Tanter to Be A Special Advisor

Lawrence Tanter, the Los Angeles Lakers' legendary public address announcer, is stepping down after 43 seasons. However, he will remain with the team in a new role: Special Advisor for Game Presentation.

The Lakers sent a press release on the matter Tuesday.

Tanter has been behind the mic for 10 NBA titles and 16 Western Conference championships. He has called out the names of many NBA legends and Lakers stars, including Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal and LeBron James.

Per ESPN's Dave McMenamin, Tanter sadly suffered a stroke in March and missed his team's final six regular season home games plus the entire playoffs. He is still rehabbing from the event.

Jason Barquero, the public address announcer for the South Bay Lakers (the team's G League affiliate) worked in Tanter's role for the rest of the season. No official replacement has been named for 2026-27 and beyond.

McMenamin gave a picture of Tanter's work and impact on the franchise and its fans.

"Known by Lakers fans simply by his initials, LT, Tanter's smooth, baritone voice provided the soundtrack for the Lakers' starting lineups, substitutions, fouls and score announcements for 43 seasons, making him the longest tenured P.A. announcer in team history.

"Tanter became famous for his cool delivery, channeling his parallel career as a disc jockey for various jazz radio stations in L.A., Tanter's signature call became announcing 'The Laker girlllssss' when the dance team finished a routine."

Tanter was the Lakers' PA announcer for the team's most recent championship in 2020. That 2019-20 season saw the NBA campaign finish in "the bubble" of the ESPN World of Sports Complex outside Orlando, Florida due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tanter was not present in the bubble, but he was there in spirit and recorded player introductions at a home studio in Los Angeles, per McMenamin.

Many folks expressed their love, admiration and/or respect for Tanter after Tuesday's news broke.

It's a sad day for the franchise as a man who worked for the team for more than half of its NBA tenure (which began in 1948) steps down. However, he'll thankfully still remain part of the organization as L.A. enters a new era behind the P.A. mic.