Despite expectations that he would become the Lakers’ next TV voice, up-and-comer Spero Dedes is departing for the only U.S. market bigger than Los Angeles.
Dedes has been named the New York Knicks’ new radio play-by-play voice, according to multiple reports. He will replace Mike Crispino on ESPN 1050 radio, and will also serve as a backup for Knicks television voice Mike Breen.
Prior to joining the Knicks, Dedes spent six years as the radio voice of the Lakers. He was expected to replace Joel Meyers as the team’s TV voice when the NBA eventually resumes play.
A Lakers spokesman told the Los Angeles Daily News the team had a verbal agreement with Dedes before he “had a change of heart” (dailynews.com, 6/21).
With Dedes gone, the Lakers have tapped Bill Macdonald as their next TV voice. John Ireland will replace Dedes on the radio. According to the Orange County Register, all of the Laker broadcasters will serve one-year contracts. The Lakers will begin a new television deal with Time Warner Cable in the 2012-13 NBA season.
(Information from Los Angeles Daily News, New York Daily News, Orange County Register, Fang’s Bites)
