Shams Charania Takes His ESPN Throne

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It’s official: Shams Charania is heading to ESPN. After the sudden retirement of the network’s NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, Charania, Woj’s former protege, was the only man in the industry that could potentially fill the scoopster’s shoes.

Shams received a hero’s welcome at the network on Monday, with “The Pat McAfee Show,” where Charania has often appeared as a guest, rolling out the red carpet. McAfee was apparently a big cheerleader for Charania to get the job, behind the scenes.

According to Shams, his first big moment of recognition as an NBA insider came when he broke the news of Luol Deng’s trade from the Chicago Bulls to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2014. His reporting on the matter bumped his Twitter followers up from 700 to 7,000.

@theogsshow

Shams tells the ‘OGs’ about the stories which helped him crack into the industry

But Shams really learned to fly under the tutelage of Woj who brought Shams to Yahoo! Sports and trained him in the art of scooping. After Woj left Yahoo for ESPN, Shams went from student to archrival.

The two duked it out in what was basically a cold war on social media, with the NBA Twitterverse often tracking who had scooped what news first, even as Shams and Woj didn’t acknowledge each other directly. In 2023, the Washington Post called the Shams-Woj war “the only real rivalry” in the NBA. 

@jackmacbarstool

Woj vs Shams is the biggest rivalry in the NBA.

But after Woj’s decision to put his iPhones on Airplane Mode for good, Shams was the clear favorite to take over the role at ESPN. Despite some rumors of a sporting change for ESPN’s baseball insider Jeff Passan, Shams eventually landed the gig. Passan doesn’t seem too hung up about it.

Despite their rivalry, it appears that Woj and Shams have buried the hatchet ahead of the succession. We love a happy ending.

@livvy

LSU gymnastics 2025 baby! #foryou #gymnastics #lsu #baseball #mlb

As women’s sports has exploded exponentially it’s propelled another revolution inspired by the one taking place on the field of play—the women’s sports conversation is happening online, where else? On TikTok—where a squad of creators have made their names covering women’s sports in brand new ways.

Coach Jackie J might be the biggest breakout star of the group, putting the tried and true TikTok explainer video format to use in the realm of women’s sports. Need the latest on Irish rugby’s dream run? Or the story of how Megan Thee Stallion wound up performing at Athlos NYC? Coach Jackie J has you covered.

@jcubedhax

COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL IS IN FULL SWING !!!! #ncaa #volleyball #pitt

Aliyah Funschelle was a key player behind one of the most viral moments of the WNBA Draft—when Kate Martin was unexpectedly drafted with all of her Iowa teammates by her side to celebrate.

@aliyahfunschelle

Replying to @aliyah | sports content #greenscreen we love kate #katemartin #wnbadraft

Then there’s stars like Ari Chambers, who covers women’s sports at ESPN and Andscape, but has developed her TikTok following into another channel for her audience to track her more outside-the-box analysis of the WNBA. The play-by-play breakdowns are for TV—but the Instagram goss? That’s TikTok gold.

@ariivory

#instagrampartner The gworls are being sneakyyyy. I’m over here trying to decipher Notes. What do yall think 📝👀 #wnba #wnbaplayoffs #wbb #... See more

The new creator economy has largely been embraced by the world of women’s sports. The New York Liberty have even developed an “Influencer Row,” where credentialed creators can sit courtside and put together fresh content from the best seats in the arena.

Legacy media is catching up to the women’s sports boom, but not at the rate that fans demand. The gap has opened up an opportunity for these creators to provide the content fans want, and they are delivering.