Why did Shams Charania initially delay tipping 2025 NBA Draft picks?
It's a tradition for ESPN's lead NBA reporter seemingly every year -- Adrian Wojnarowski used to tip the picks for the NBA Draft minutes before they were officially announced, sometimes with colorful language.
But now, Shams Charania is his replacement, and NBA fans were fully expecting him to tip picks. And ... he went silent for the first couple of picks. It was shocking!
Advertisement
Why was that? There was no explanation, at least after a cursory look around. Maybe ESPN put a stop to it before letting him do it with the No. 3 pick -- remember, he did this before he joined the Worldwide Leader.
Fans had all kinds of reactions to Charania's Twitter tipping
Shams kept going on Twitter, as did Jonathan Givony
Just another draft on Twitter, it turns out.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Why Shams Charania started tipping 2025 NBA Draft picks late?
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
24 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NBA》獨行俠選進佛雷格！成詹皇後最年輕狀元 達拉斯「四巨頭」成形
2025年NBA選秀會今天在籃網隊主場巴克萊中心舉行首輪選秀，握有狀元籤的獨行俠，不意外的選入來自杜克大學的超級新人佛雷格（Cooper Flagg），讓他成為繼2003的詹姆斯（LeBron James）後，史上第二年輕的選秀狀元。 今年選秀籤前五順位分別是獨行俠、馬刺、76人、黃蜂與爵士。而在選秀之前，外界就預期佛雷格將以狀元之姿被獨行俠選走，最終獨行俠也毫不意外的選入。 Cooper Flagg is one of the youngest to ever join the NBA ? — NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 26, 2025 18歲的佛拉格擁有全能身手，並在去年夏天獲邀進入奧運靶子隊，面對眾星雲集的美國男籃毫無懼色、表現驚艷全場。大一賽季出賽37場，平均貢獻19.2分、7.5籃板、4.2助攻、1.4抄截、1.4阻攻，外線命中率39%，率領球隊打進NCAA四強，模板包括皮朋（Scottie Pippen）、坦圖（Jayson Tatum）與雷納德（Kawhi Leonard）。 MAVS SELECT DUKE PHENOM COOPER FLAGG WITH THE NO. 1 PICK ?AD, KYRIE AND COOP ON THE SAME TEAM ?⏳ — Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 26, 2025 同時，年僅18歲的佛雷格成為史上第二年輕的選秀狀元，僅次於2003年狀元郎詹姆斯，也中斷過去兩年選秀狀元都被非美籍球員拿下的紀錄。接下來佛雷格將與湯普森（Klay Thompson）、戴維斯（Anthony Davis）、厄文（Kyrie Irving）等人聯手，成為新的獨行俠四巨頭。 更多新聞推薦 • 更多》NBA最新報導
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Fans Left in Disbelief After Incredible Marcell Ozuna Moment During Braves Game
Fans Left in Disbelief After Incredible Marcell Ozuna Moment During Braves Game originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Atlanta Braves superstar Ronald Acuña Jr. got the first laugh against the New York Mets this week, mashing a home run and celebrating with an imaginary grenade. Advertisement New York Mets center fielder Jeff McNeil had no intentions of letting other Braves players pull off any similar tactics. McNeil robbed Braves designated Marcell Ozuna of a two-run home run in the first inning on Wednesday night. Mets left fielder Brandon Nimmo immediately celebrated while McNeil threw the ball back in. Understandably, Mets fans joined Nimmo in celebrating the sensational play. 'This play will be the beginning of the turn around for the Mets,' one X/Twitter user wrote. 'Mark my words.' Added another: 'McNeil does not get enough credit for being an incredible athlete.' 'This is outstanding, even more so cause the dude is a 2nd baseman,' a third user acknowledged. New York Mets center fielder Jeff McNeilWendell Cruz-Imagn Images Others referenced McNeil's nickname, 'The Flying Squirrel,' while discussing the robbery. Advertisement 'RALLY OFF THIS, METS 🐿️' an X user exclaimed. 'Can't spell Jeff McNeil without a C and an F,' quipped another. Related: Former $41 Million All-Star Rips Ronald Acuña Jr. After Home Run Celebration This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 25, 2025, where it first appeared.
Forbes
26 minutes ago
- Forbes
Sixers Reveal Why They Preferred VJ Edgecombe To Ace Bailey In 2025 NBA Draft
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 25: VJ Edgecombe (R) shakes hands with NBA commissioner Adam Silver (L) ... More after being drafted second overall by the Philadelphia 76ers during the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 25, 2025 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by) For most of the past year, Duke forward Cooper Flagg, Rutgers guard Dylan Harper and Rutgers forward Ace Bailey were widely considered to be the top three prospects in the 2025 NBA draft class. The top of the draft board held to form Wednesday night, as the Dallas Mavericks took Flagg with the No. 1 overall pick, and the San Antonio Spurs selected Harper at No. 2. However, the Philadelphia 76ers deviated at No. 3 and took Baylor guard VJ Edgecombe ahead of Bailey. Right after the draft lottery in mid-May, ESPN's Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo projected the Sixers to take Bailey at No. 3 rather than Edgecombe. But as the draft drew closer, it became increasingly clear that Edgecombe was their guy. After the first round of the draft Wednesday, team president Daryl Morey explained what drew the Sixers toward Edgecombe rather than Bailey. "Above and beyond what you can see on the floor, the thing we spend a lot of time on—and I will say, it's very hard to forecast with 18-year-olds, 19-year-olds, 20-year-olds," Morey told reporters. "We don't think we have some crystal ball. But where we can get more confidence that a player has two things, which is they understand that they're not where they need to be. They understand they're not yet, you know, pick your All-Star guard in the league. And then they have the work ethic to close that gap. If a player has that, that's very interesting to us." What Gave Edgecombe the Edge? Edgecombe spent only one season at Baylor, but he took a clear leap as the season progressed. He started the year by making his mark defensively—he averaged 2.5 steals and 1.3 blocks over his first 10 games—and then he grew more aggressive on offense from there. While he still has some work to do on improving his ball-handling and pull-up shooting, Morey believes his athleticism and off-the-catch shooting ability gives him both a high floor and a high ceiling. Morey specifically referenced Edgecombe's fit with All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey as a big selling point in his favor. "Just fit-wise, I think the good thing is Tyrese has high basketball IQ," he said. 'He understands that those two complement each other very well. In terms of like, VJ's gonna be able to guard multiple positions, probably take the toughest assignment. Maybe not day one, but in his career. And then Tyrese and him really play off of each other well [on offense]." That two-way ability might have helped him gain separation on Bailey, who has the physical tools to be an elite defender but wasn't always engaged on that end of the floor. Bailey's attitude also might have rubbed the Sixers the wrong way. Morey said that Bailey's decision to abruptly cancel his predraft workout at the last minute didn't factor into their choice, but his reported desire to find "a clear path to stardom" (via Givony and ESPN's Shams Charania) differed greatly from Edgecombe's attitude on draft night. "Whatever Coach needs me to do, I'm gonna go do," Edgecombe said. "If it requires me coming off the bench, if it requires me starting, playing alongside both Maxey and [Jared] McCain, playing with one of them at the same time, it don't matter. I'm just going there to play. Like I said, whatever Coach Nurse needs me to do, I'm gonna do it." Will The Sixers Regret Their Choice? With Maxey, Joel Embiid and Paul George all in the fold, the Sixers didn't necessarily need a high-usage, shot-hunting player. Bailey might have a higher ceiling than Edgecombe if he hits his 100% outcome, but he also may have a much lower floor. Edgecombe's well-documented work ethic and willingness to fill any role asked of him should help him carve out a niche in the NBA, even if he doesn't eventually develop into an All-Star. The Sixers may now have a positional logjam to sort out, particularly if they're able to re-sign soon-to-be restricted free agent Quentin Grimes. Both Maxey and McCain are listed at 6'2", while Edgecombe is 6'4" and Grimes is 6'5". Head coach Nick Nurse figures to rotate all four and try three-guard lineups, but the 6'7½" Bailey would have filled a bigger need positionally. However, Morey didn't appear too worried about that on draft night. In fact, he thinks having that much depth in the backcourt could be a major strength for the Sixers. "I think we'll have one of the best backcourts in the league with Grimes and Maxey and Jared McCain and now VJ," he said. "I do think the way the NBA is going, I think you saw some of these teams playing dynamic, uptempo, with multiple guards that put the defense in jeopardy." The Indiana Pacers just came within one game of winning this year's championship with Tyrese Haliburton and Andrew Nembhard starting in the same backcourt together, although both of them are 6'5" rather than 6'2". Still, teams can never have too many versatile, athletic guards in this day and age, particularly ones who can make an impact on both ends of the floor like Edgecombe can. Morey did say that Edgecombe needs to improve his finishing around the basket, although he cited veteran guard Eric Gordon as someone who could help him in that regard. "I think someone like Eric, who took a big leap in finishing by working on his craft, his footwork, his timing, his takeoff points, he really improved that in the early parts of his career," Morey said. "But [Edgecombe] has that base athleticism, physical tools and the work ethic that you see he could grow into that." If Bailey turns into a two-way star in Utah, the Sixers could grow to regret passing on him. But given everything they know about Edgecombe's character, work ethic and two-way impact, they appear confident in their decision to gamble on his floor/ceiling mix instead. Unless otherwise noted, all stats via PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM. All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook. Follow Bryan on Bluesky.
