Who will replace Adrian Wojnarowski? That has been the big question on every fan’s mind ever since the media mogul announced his retirement from the industry last week. Sure enough, Shams Charania seems like the obvious ‘protégé replacing guru’ choice, as the passionate reporter is now arguably the most influential NBA insider. But the pursuit will not be easy for ESPN because other major competitors have their eyes set on the hottest free agent in the market.
With Shams Charania’s contract with FanDuel TV and The Athletic, paying him about $3 to $4 million/year, coming to an end this month, rumors emerged that NBC is also interested in the insider’s pursuit. And now, Amazon is reportedly joining that race as the $2 trillion company is set to begin its NBA broadcasting journey next year after recently inking the $77 billion media rights deal. With interest from multiple suitors, Charania has kept his options open and, per Front Office Sports, is “talking to everyone at this point.”
Well, he could be a perfect fit for Amazon, as they have a history of finding a good mix between young talent and established figures as they did with NFL’s Thursday Night Football. The 30-year-old somehow checks both boxes. Prime also boasts a younger audience compared to linear networks and Shams’ fresh outlook will likely resonate with its viewers. However, NBC is also not a bad place to land for Charania as they could excel with the insider’s strong connections in the league once they begin airing games next year.
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But ESPN likely will not back down so easily and if they want Shams, they will move mountains to get him. If, being the key word. John Ourand at Puck earlier claimed “ESPN doesn’t need a Woj 2.0 and can break NBA news by committee with their deep roster of NBA reporting talent.” They have established in-house talent in Brian Windhorst and Ramona Shelburne, who have the potential to fill the void that Woj’s departure has left. In fact, this ‘news-by-committee’ approach was “his Achilles’ heel,” a source once said. So, it is uncertain if they will go all out to acquire Shams.
What’s your reaction? Is ESPN’s pursuit of Shams Charania a game-changer after Wojnarowski’s exit? React! Reactions
Moreover, The Athletic will also do everything in its power to retain him, as he has been one of the pillars of their coverage for the past six years. But why is every big network after him?
Shams Charania’s insane work ethic and massive following make him the most desirable NBA insider
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While there are other talented insiders in the industry, Shams Charania has been one of the top guys for years, that too at such a young age. And a lot of it has to do with his insane work ethic. “He’s criminally underrated,” a source told FOS. Surely, that’s much more than one person thinking the same way. During an interview last year, he revealed that he had a daily screen time of nearly 18 hours and he sends out nearly 500 calls, e-mails, and texts a day in his pursuit to break any news related to the league before everyone else.
“My mind is consumed by, ‘What can I do today to get information that I didn’t have yesterday?’ It consumes everything I do,” he remarked. Moreover, even when he goes on vacation during the summer, it is not your typical time off from work. In fact, he prefers sitting by the pool doing nothing so that he has access to his phone at all times. Yes, his screen time does reduce when he is on vacation. But it only falls to approximately 12 hours, which is still quite daunting, which means the guy never stops working.
He also has a massive social media following of over three million across multiple platforms and is one of the most reliable news sources in the industry. Surely, that’s why everyone wants him. Which network do you think Shams should join?
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Before leaving, do watch the Dual Threat Show hosted by BG12 where Bulldogs’ Asia Avinger details her experience with Kobe Bryant, her WNBA ROTY picks, and more in the video below.