Shams Charania is one of the most respected and reliable insiders in sports media. The 29-year-old has been breaking stories for over a decade now, and his NBA-focused scoops are only rivaled by former colleague and current ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnaroski.
With as much influence as he has on the sports world, when he speaks, people listen, and betting line act accordingly. That’s what happened on Thursday in the lead-up to the NBA Draft.
With Victor Wembanyama a lock to go with the first overall pick to the San Antonio Spurs, the first real unknown of the draft was whether the Charlotte Hornets would take Brandon Miller or Scoot Henderson with the second pick. Miller had been the odds-on favorite for quite some time, but the odds changed after this tweet from Shams Charania on Thursday.
Sources: Scoot Henderson is gaining serious momentum at No. 2 with the Charlotte Hornets in tonight’s NBA draft. Hornets have been torn over the last week between Henderson and Brandon Miller. Team has final meetings today to settle on decision.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 22, 2023
And, the odds on who would go to Charlotte changed significantly. Ultimately, though, they settled on Miller, who had been the favorite for a while now.
For second pick at @PointsBetUSA today
8 AM (MT)
Miller -600
Scoot +3009:45AM
Miller -200
Scoot +14010:30AM (Shams tweet)
Scoot -700
Miller +40011:45AM
Scoot -300
Miller +2003:00PM
Scoot -140
Miller +1003:30PM
Miller -140
Scoot +1004:00PM
Miller -190
Scoot +130Now…
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) June 22, 2023
Now, normally this wouldn’t be a problem. After all, Shams Charania is a reputable source and it wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for the odds to move because of him. But, last October, he signed a deal with FanDuel, which of course owns a sportsbook that accepts bets on such things in some states.
Now, people are questioning the ethics of the entire situation.
I don’t think there is anything nefarious going on but I find it puzzling that a regulated Sportsbook is allowed to take bets on the NBA draft and also employ an “insider” who can tweet nonsense that can move the betting markets.
— Haralabos Voulgaris (@haralabob) June 23, 2023
– shams (employed by fanduel) tweets this
– tons of people put money on scoot at #2 at sportsbook like fanduel (odds massively shifted immediately after the tweet)
– hornets don’t draft scoot
– fanduel makes a ton of money
is this not just blatant fraud ??? https://t.co/Vf6yKFOrYu
— mansur🕊️ (@mansurshaheen) June 23, 2023
Shams out here committing fraud in broad daylight https://t.co/CgiHV2JGEh
— Patrick (@patrickkleary) June 23, 2023
On Friday, FanDuel responded to the controversy with a statement where it asserted it has no advance knowledge of Charania’s scoops.
FanDuel breaks silence on @ShamsCharania Scoot to No. 2 backlash from bettors in a statement:
“FanDuel is not privy to any news that Shams breaks on his platforms.”
More to come on @ActionNetworkHQ.
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) June 23, 2023
I highly doubt that Shams Charania was actively part of a scheme to defraud bettors. But, the optics are bad nonetheless.