ESPN Insider Shams Charania Thought Phone Was Hacked When He Learned Of Luka Doncic Trade

The news wasn’t just a shock to us. Even the most trusted NBA insiders didn’t think they should believe the Luka Doncic news.

But it turned out to be true, as Doncic was traded from the Dallas Mavericks to the Los Angeles Lakers in a deal that brought back Anthony Davis. It stunned even the first man to report it, ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania.

“I mean I thought my phone was hacked when I got the text messages with the details of the trade and when I got wind of the deal,” Charania said on Get Up on Monday morning.

Charania wasn’t alone. The entire NBA seemed to think Charania himself was hacked when he sent out the news on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“I was like everybody — did Shams get hacked? It was a real big shock,”  Mavs guard Dante Exum said. “I’ve been traded twice, and you just learn that it’s how this business works, and it’s something you have to adjust to.”

Charania took over at ESPN for former colleague and sometimes rival Adrian Wojnarowski, who left to become the director of basketball operations at St. Bonaventure. That was a stunning move. The Mavs’ decision to trade Doncic was probably even more stunning.

So stunning, in fact, it caught Charania himself off guard before reporting it.

Many others rubbed their eyes a few times before believing the news as well. That’s just what happens when you have an NBA trade as crazy as this one.