Who won the 2024 NBA Draft, Shams or Woj? Which media titan had more correct information?
In the world of NBA breaking news, two titans tower over everyone else: ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and The Athletic's Shams Charania.
For years, the NBA draft has been a battleground where these media personalities go head-to-head, attempting to provide fans with the best information before their counterpart. The 2024 draft was no different. Every rumor, pick, proposed trade was sent out onto the internet by both Shams and Woj, and whoever had the correct information first wound up winning that moment.
Singular victories mean nothing in the face of either insider proving superiority over the other throughout the entirety of the draft. So, that begs the question, who won the night? Who had more correct information? Who was able to provide fans with the best up-to-the-minute updates?
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Shams vs. Woj
Despite both insiders covering the same material, neither person really stepped on the other's toes. Shams played the typical spoiler role, tweeting out pick selections 2-3 minutes before they were announced on ESPN.
The Lakers are selecting Dalton Knecht at No. 17 in the NBA Draft, sources say. https://t.co/1u2Qcjqzbo
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 27, 2024
Memphis is picking Zach Edey at No. 9, sources say. https://t.co/1u2Qcjqzbo
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 27, 2024
On the other hand, Woj focused on answering fans' questions, such as which teams were looking to trade up or whether or not the Pistons were going to keep the No. 5 overall pick.
Another team working to move up and secure Donovan Clingan, sources tell ESPN: Portland
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 27, 2024
Pistons are keeping the pick, focused on Ron Holland, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 27, 2024
When the two did cross paths directly, they were on each other's tails. Woj did get the advantage over Shams in some situations. For example, Woj tweeted out the details of the trade between Minnesota and San Antonio for the rights to No. 8 overall pick Rob Dillingham just moments before Shams tweeted out those details. Both men were able to get the information out at 9:02 p.m. ET, though.
Fans could argue that Woj has won the night strictly because his tweets are getting more interactions. Take that Rob Dillingham tweet, for example. At the time of writing, Woj's tweet has 4.2 million views and 8.3 thousand likes, while Shams' tweet has just 1.4 million views and six thousand likes.
Woj has also done a tremendous job of not just repeating what fans will see on TV moments later. Throughout the draft, Woj has kept fans informed about players while keeping a bit of the suspense intact.
Bulls are focusing on the Chicago kid, Matas Buzelis, source tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 27, 2024
Cleveland has Jaylon Tyson at top of board, source says.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 27, 2024
He is not detailing the picks exactly but is hinting at who the teams will take.
Of course, you could argue that the open-ended nature of Woj's tweets here is evidence that he is less certain of his information than Shams was all night.
That said, many fans prefer to have the picks revealed when Adam Silver makes the announcement, which might make Woj's feed more enjoyable.
Woj and Shams are NOT spoiling the NBA Draft for me today man pic.twitter.com/pKI4bB11y3
— John 🎓🇨🇻 (@YaBoyyyJohn) June 26, 2024
Who do fans think won?
Fans seem to share the same sentiment as listed above. While Shams may be getting more picks right, his insistence on revealing the picks before they were announced has upset many fans.
Shams leaking these picks before they are announced is stupid.
What are you actually proving by doing this? Have some shame. League needs to correct this.— .Joy Jagpreet Singh (ਜਾੱਈ ਜਗਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ) ☬ (@joysinghg) June 27, 2024
Worst part about draft night is scrolling through social media and seeing Shams ruin every single pick. I swear sometimes you try avoiding it and it’ll still pop up.
— Seth Hippli (@sethhippli) June 27, 2024
Still, fans who were not upset noticed Woj's unwillingness to announce picks officially and took it as evidence of Shams winning the night.
Woj getting tired of seeing Shams tweet out picks before ultimately doing it himself is one of the best draft night traditions https://t.co/6i8Mhx85zU
— Kegan Reneau (@KeganReneau) June 27, 2024
This draft is so bad that Woj didn’t even care enough to tweet the picks anymore https://t.co/EfAjOsSh9s
— Eric (@PointGods) June 27, 2024
Outside of draft news itself, Woj may have won the draft with this Kenny Atkinson bomb in the middle of the draft.
WOJ Cavs bomb in the middle of the draft. 💣 https://t.co/BMl4vBDsMF
— Brady Hamilton (@BradyH_216) June 27, 2024
Charania posted no such information on Atkinson, giving Woj a noticeable edge.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Did Shams or Woj win the 2024 NBA Draft? What the tweets say