Adrian Wojnarowski Dropped His Biggest Woj Bomb on U.S. Senator
Adrian Wojnarowski is ESPN’s main NBA reporter and is notorious for breaking news on Twitter. The veteran reporter does it so often his followers have dubbed his bombshell tweets as “Woj Bombs.” On Friday, Wojnarowski changed it up a little bit by dropping a bomb of a different kind on U.S. Senator Josh Hawley and as you might expect, Twitter did its thing.
Adrian Wojnarowski and his bombs
Since Adrian Wojnarowski joined ESPN three years ago, he has quickly established himself as a prominent reporter for the network. His coverage of the NBA regularly scoops reporters at other media outlets, which reveals he’s one of the most trusted reporters in NBA front offices around the league. He’s also respected amongst his peers.
“He’s the greatest news breaker of all time in any sport,” said longtime NBA writer and fellow ESPN reporter Jackie MacMullan in a YouTube documentary on Wojnarowski. “To me, it’s not even a question.”
Wojnarowski’s following on Twitter, which is over four million, eagerly awaits his latest tweet on a regular basis. If there’s the possibility of a player being dealt, or in these times, a player not showing up at the bubble in Orlando, it’s almost guaranteed Wojnarowski will be first to drop the news in one of his “bombs.”
Missouri Senator Josh Hawley sends letter to NBA
On Friday, Missouri Senator Josh Hawley sent a press release detailing a letter he planned to send to NBA commissioner Adam Silver that criticized the league’s decision to limit messages players can wear on their uniforms to “pre-approved, social justice slogans” while “censoring support” for law enforcement and criticism of the Chinese Communist Party.
The letter calls into question the NBA’s relationship with China, which has been embroiled in controversy since October when Rockets general Daryl Morey manager tweeted a message in support of the Hong Kong protesters, who were involved in pro-democracy protests against the communist nation. The tweet, which was quickly deleted, created a rift between the league and China that has reportedly cost the NBA more than $300 million in television revenue.
Hawley’s letter also suggested the messages on the back of jerseys in the NBA restart should also include phrasing that is in support of the United States, the American military, and law enforcement personnel, such as “God Bless America,” “Support Our Troops,” or “Back the Blue.”
Woj response to Hawley letter and apology
When Adrian Wojnarowski received the press release, he clearly didn’t appreciate its contents and sent an email to Hawley with a simple response, “F**k you.” When Hawley received the Wojnarowski response, he promptly posted it to Twitter.
“Don’t criticize #China or express support for law enforcement to @espn. It makes them real mad,” Hawley tweeted, including a screenshot of the response.
Woj’s defenders and many of Hawley’s own constituents had some choice words for the senator.
“10% unemployment and 1100 dead from COVID in Missouri but this #content will feed so many, thank you,” one constituent wrote.
“Once again Hawley more interested in getting into a Twitter fight than doing his damn job. Bounties on US soldiers, Covid cases rising out of control, a massive unemployment rate, and this is what you are concerned about,” another said.
Wojnarowski later tweeted an apology, expressing regret for his email.
“I was disrespectful and I made a regrettable mistake. I’m sorry for the way I handled myself and I am reaching out immediately to Senator Hawley to apologize directly. I also need to apologize to my ESPN colleagues because I know my actions were unacceptable and should not reflect on any of them.”
Will we see more Woj bombs in the future? Time will tell.
