Shams Charania

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Shams Charania
Charania in 2023
Born (1994-04-01) April 1, 1994 (age 30)
EducationLoyola University Chicago
OccupationSports reporter

Shams Charania (/ˈʃɑːmz/ SHAHMZ; born April 1, 1994) is an American sports reporter for The Athletic and Stadium where he covers the NBA.

Early life[edit]

Charania was born in Chicago to Pakistani Ismaili Muslim parents who had immigrated to the U.S. in the 1980s.[1] He was raised in Wilmette, Illinois and attended New Trier High School. He graduated from Loyola University Chicago.[citation needed]

Career[edit]

He began his sportswriting career at age 17 covering the Chicago Bulls for ChicagoNow, a subsidiary of the Chicago Tribune. In 2012, Charania began writing for RealGM, and reporting small transactions around the league.[citation needed] After several years, Charania caught the attention of Adrian Wojnarowski, then working for Yahoo Sports.

After joining Yahoo, Charania began to break news of deals and high-profile signings in the summer of 2016,[2] including Dwight Howard's move to the Atlanta Hawks, DeMar DeRozan's re-signing with the Toronto Raptors, Luol Deng's signing with the Los Angeles Lakers, and Jamal Crawford's signing with the Los Angeles Clippers.[3] This set off a friendly rivalry between Wojnarowski and Charania.[4]

In 2017, Charania broke signings by Stephen Curry, Blake Griffin, Jeff Teague, and Paul Millsap.[5] On August 14, 2018, Shams announced via his Twitter account he would be leaving Yahoo Sports for The Athletic and Stadium at the end of the month.[6] On October 2, 2020, Charania reported that President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump had tested positive for COVID-19.[7] In 2023, Charania reported the first three picks of the 2023 NFL draft on Twitter ahead of even NFL insiders, causing many users on the platforms to post memes in response.[8]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Two Ismailis chose the path less traveled – a career in sports journalism". The.Ismaili. November 20, 2019.
  2. ^ Russell, Jake (June 25, 2016). "'The Vertical' NBA draft show live stream was a huge hit with fans. Sorry, ESPN". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  3. ^ "Meet Shams Charania, the College Senior Breaking NBA News in Class". Complex. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  4. ^ "Adrian Wojnarowski And Shams Charania Now Do Battle For NBA Scoops". UPROXX. July 13, 2017. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  5. ^ "Has Adrian Wojnarowski lost his title as king of NBA Twitter?". Sporting News. July 3, 2017. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  6. ^ "Twitter". August 14, 2018. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
  7. ^ "Shams Charania Scooped Everyone on Donald Trump's Positive COVID-19 Test". www.msn.com. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
  8. ^ Taylor, Cody (April 27, 2023). "Twitter reacts to NBA reporter Shams Charania tipping NFL draft picks". USA Today. Retrieved May 3, 2023.