Iman Shumpert Biography

Iman Shumpert was born on June 26, 1990, in Oak Park, Illinois, US, to Odis and L’Tanya Shumpert. He was one of the couple’s four sons. His father is an insurance broker, and his mother is a professor. He and his older brothers started playing basketball in their backyard when they were young, and Iman would often beat his brothers in the game.

Iman grew up fascinated with the world of basketball and idolized Michael Jordan when he was a kid. His aunt, Carolyn, was a major basketball fan, and she took Iman to the games quite often. One of the most influential days of Iman’s life was when he was around eight years old and went to watch a game between the Bulls and the Celtics. The Bulls won, and as Iman sat courtside, the Bulls’ players shook hands with him. This led Iman to get fascinated by the NBA.

He started playing school-level basketball early, and by the time he was in eighth grade, he was a key part of his school’s team at Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School. At that time, he was in the same team with Evan Turner, who later became a famous NBA player.

Iman Shumpert then joined Oak Park and River Forest High School and became an integral part of his school team again. There, he became the first-team all-state player and was also featured on the list of the country’s top 30 senior players. Scout.com ranked him 15th on their list of the country’s senior players.

In 2008, he got a chance to play in the prestigious McDonald’s All-American Game. The same year, he was named a third-team Parade All-American.

Iman Shumpert enrolled at Georgia Tech University in 2008, and from the very beginning, he was a key part of the team there. He performed excellently during his first year of college and was the fourth-leading scorer for the team, averaging 10.5 points per game.

During the second season, he was plagued with a knee injury and missed out on several games. Despite that, he made a strong comeback, and with an average of 10.0 points per game, he was named the third-best player of the season.

Iman was in his best form during the third year of his college basketball career. He averaged more than 17 points per game and became only the seventh player in the history of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) to achieve the feat. He also holds the Georgia Tech record for the most steals per game.

Following such exceptional performances, the NBA draft could not have ignored him. In March 2011, he had to drop out of college. The same year, he was drafted by the New York Knicks. He thus began his professional basketball career at NBA.

Iman was drafted as the 17th overall pick by the Knicks. Following his first few games with the Knicks, teammate Jared Jeffries praised him and regarded him as one of the best on-ball defenders active in the NBA.

In 2012, Iman Shumpert was selected to participate in the NBA All-Star Weekend Slam Dunk Contest. However, a knee injury kept him away from participating. That knee injury continued to bother him for a very long time.

After making a comeback in April 2012, he suffered a knee injury in a game against Miami Heat. He was immediately taken off the court. Medical checkups revealed that the injury was very serious and that Iman would have to stay away from the court for the rest of the season.

Despite the injuries and despite not playing for the most part of his first season, he was given a respectable spot in the Rookie of the Year voting. Receiving 33 votes in total, Iman Shumpert earned the fifth spot. The voting process involved 120 sports writers and broadcasters. Strangely, Iman was the only rookie to get votes for the Defensive Player of the Year Award.

In early 2013, Iman came back to practice with his team, following a clearance from his doctors. He played his first game of the season on January 17 against the Detroit Pistons in London, and ended up scoring 8 points, with 3 rebounds and 1 assist.

He made up for the time he spent away from the court and played exceptionally well for the Knicks, helping them emerge as one of the strongest NBA sides. In December 2014, another injury plagued him. In a game against the Boston Celtics, he dislocated his left shoulder.

The Cleveland Cavaliers got hold of him in early 2015. On January 23, he played his debut game for his new team. In the game against the Charlotte Hornets, he scored 8 points, with 2 rebounds and 2 assists. He played a major role in making his team enter the 2015 NBA Finals. However, his team lost the title to the Golden State Warriors.

Despite a bad loss in the finals, Iman’s performance was appreciated. In July 2015, his contract was renewed and he became a $40-million player.

Another injury struck him in September 2015, and he was made to stay off the court for the following three months.

In a March 2016 game against the Boston Celtics, Iman scored 12 points and 16 rebounds. It was his career-high score. Another injury had him missing a few games before the season playoffs. However, he made his entry right in time and helped his team reach the NBA Finals for the second consecutive year.

After a bumpy start, the Cavaliers made a record comeback in the finals and ended up winning the NBA title. Iman Shumpert continued his amazing performance in the next season, and in a game against the Detroit Pistons, he scored a career-high 18 points.

He assisted his team in reaching the NBA Finals for the third-consecutive time in 2017. However, the Cavaliers lost in the finals against the Golden State Warriors.

In December 2017, another injury gave Iman a two-month break. In February 2018, he was acquired by the Sacramento Kings. In 2019, he was acquired by Houston Rockets where he didn’t stay long. On November 13, 2019, Iman Shumpert was signed by the Brooklyn Nets. However, he was waived by the Brooklyn Nets on December 12, 2019, only to be re-signed on January 30, 2021.

Iman Shumpert is a huge fan of rap music. He also entered the rap music arena in 2012, with the song Knicks Anthem and a mixtape. Some of his most famous singles are Chiraq and Dear Kendrick. In April 2018, Iman released an EP titled Substance Abuse.

Iman is married to recording artist Teyana Taylor. In December 2015, the couple had a daughter named Iman Tayla Shumpert Jr. Iman helped his wife deliver the baby. On September 6, 2020, the couple welcomed their second daughter Rue Rose.