Matthew Valento

Matthew Valento graduated from Boise State University with a major in integrated media and strategic communications and a minor in journalism. He grew up in Santa Clarita, California and played basketball at Saugus High School. Along with writing for LakersNation.com, Matthew also hosts a basketball podcast called, "The Basketball Maestros." Contact: MattV@MediumLargeLA.com Twitter: @matthewvalento Instagram: matthew.valento
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Lakers News: Ivica Zubac Reveals Magic Johnson Prevented Kareem Abdul-Jabbar From Mentoring Him

A trade that haunts the Los Angeles Lakers and their fans to this day was the 2019 deal sending Ivica Zubac to the L.A. Clippers for Mike Muscala. Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka were the two key decision-makers at the…

Lakers News: Jaylen Brown Challenges Luka Doncic & Other Stars To One-On-One Tournament

NBA All-Star Weekend is always a fun time to get the league's brightest stars together to celebrate the game. This year featured a new change with USA taking on the World in a three-team tournament, and Los Angeles Lakers star…

Lakers News: Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic Impressed By LeBron James’ Longevity

With the All-Star break underway, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James gets much-needed rest as the 41-year-old has been playing in a lot of games lately. However, he still needs to participate in his 22nd consecutive All-Star game, which is…

Luka Doncic Looking To Enjoy First All-Star Game With Lakers, Plans To Play Limited Minutes

It is safe to say that Luka Doncic has been as advertised since the Los Angeles Lakers acquired him from the Dallas Mavericks over a year ago. In his first full season in L.A., Doncic is leading the league in…

Lakers News: Jaxson Hayes Always Dreamed Of Being In NBA Slam Dunk Contest

All-Star Weekend is approaching and Los Angeles Lakers center Jaxson Hayes will be participating in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. Hayes is the seventh Laker to participate in this event with Kobe Bryant being the lone champion in 1997. In…

Lakers Rumors: Donovan Mitchell & James Harden Planning To Recruit LeBron James To Cavaliers

All eyes are on Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James this summer as he is currently on an expiring contract and has the ability to hit free agency for the first time in almost a decade. No concrete answers have…

Lakers Rumors: Dalton Knecht Was ‘Shopped Aggressively’ At Trade Deadline

The Los Angeles Lakers were one of the teams expected to be active at the NBA trade deadline this year as they had a number of expiring contracts to part with in potential deals. That is not exactly how it…

Lakers News: JJ Redick Applauds Luke Kennard’s Ability To Make Reads In Debut

Bench scoring has not been an area of strength for the Los Angeles Lakers, but they opted to bring in Luke Kennard at the trade deadline to help aid in that. Having a player or two that can score when…

Lakers News: Luke Kennard Broke LeBron James’ Ohio High School Scoring Record

The NBA trade deadline has come and gone with the Los Angeles Lakers opting to make just one move by acquiring Luke Kennard. The Lakers had a lot of needed to address, with one of them being 3-point shooting, and…

Lakers News: Luke Kennard Willing To Shoot More, Per Request Of JJ Redick

Luke Kennard is the newest Los Angeles Laker as they brought him at the trade deadline in a deal with the Atlanta Hawks for Gabe Vincent and a future second-round pick. The deadline always involves a lot of player movement,…