Millions of NBA fans around the globe hang on the latest reports from “Woj” and “Shams” – two reporters who break many of professional basketball’s biggest stories. Fans of these top NBA insiders know it’s only a rumor until Adrian Wojnaroski or Shams Charania confirms the story.
What makes the dynamics of NBA breaking news even more dramatic is that “Shams” is the protégé of “Woj” – and only 25 years old. Indeed, Wojnarowski took Charania under his wing at Yahoo’s basketball site “The Vertical” while Shams was still in college. The teenager had already made a name for himself with pro-level scoops while working out of his dorm room.
Just a few years later, Woj and Shams duel it out to break NBA news, with Charania reporting for The Athletic and Stadium. The young Chicago-native has in just a few years earned a reputation for reliable and credible scoops, often out-hustling veteran sports reporters.
Shams Charania Started as a Passionate NBA Fan
Before his reporting propelled him to the stature of a top NBA insider, Shams Charania was simply one of the millions of youngsters around the globe obsessed with basketball. “My first real passions in life were basketball and writing,” he explains. “I hoped to combine that with my love for the NBA and the ins and outs of the league.”
He recalls refreshing sites like RealGM and Hoopshype for the latest NBA rumors. “It was more than just the news items that interested me. It was the behind-the-scenes stories, the rise and fall of players, the teams and people in the league that fascinated me and pushed me to pursue the career.”
Shams began writing blog posts for ChicagoNow while he was still in high school. But his career began in earnest when he began seeking out relationships with local players.
Shams Charania Hustles to Build Relationships with NBA Stars
In 2012, Shams drove an hour and a half from the suburbs of Chicago into downtown to attend an event with Miami Heat star Dwayne Wade. He managed to connect with Wade at the event and even developed a relationship. Shams credits that moment for revealing the vital lesson that “being present is always worth it.”
A few weeks later, he went to the Chicago Bulls media day, only to learn that the Bulls would not credential a reporter so young. Undaunted, he drove north and applied for credentials from the Milwaukee Bucks, who have less strict media rules. Shams conducted many interviews with players, building personal relationships and earning the trust that serves as the bedrock of his career.
These initial relationships soon opened new doors. In 2013, he broke the news of the LA Clippers signing Stephen Jackson. The next month, he reported the trade that sent Luol Deng from the Bulls to the Cleveland Cavaliers. This led Woj to credit Shams as “the best young reporter in business.”
Millions Wait for Charania’s “Shams Bombs”
Accolades for Shams’s reporting flowed even as an undergraduate student. As The Complex described him: “If there were such a thing as a prep-to-pro journalism prospect, Charania would be it.” His big scoops became known as “Shams Bombs.”
“Every time he breaks a story,” noted Sports Illustrated’s Lee Jenkins, “I sit there and look at Twitter and envision him in, like, junior year chemistry, sort of tuning out the professor and getting a text from a major agent about a story that’s going down.”
By the time Shams graduated college and joined Woj at Yahoo’s “The Vertical” he had already achieved a high status as an NBA reporter. Then ESPN lured awaj Woj, launching a friendly rivalry between mentor and protégé to break NBA scoops. When it comes time for free agency signings and trades, fans wait – and occasionally bet – on either Woj or Shams to break the story.
“This business is always about building trust with someone,” observes Charania. “I would never want to shortcut anything. I’ve never considered anything to be just about the scoop… the whole name of this game and life in general is about relationships, period. And that’s what I’ve always tried to value first and foremost.”
Fans can catch Charania’s latest breaking news on his Twitter page.
