There is no denying that the NBA has been able to achieve global recognition through the abundance of talent in the league which includes names like Iman Shumpert. While Iman may not carry the same name recognition as some of his peers like James Harden or Steph Curry, he is a world-class talent in his own right and can point to a sizeable trophy cabinet which includes an NBA Championship and a McDonald’s All-American accolade.
Below, we take a look at the life and career of the Houston Rockets number 1, Iman Shumpert.
Iman Shumpert’s Early Life
Iman Shumpert, to anyone who is keyed into the zeitgeist, is more than just a basketballer, he is an entertainer. The Houston Rockets man has built a reputation that has made him more than just another name on the hardwood court in the NBA. He began this journey on the 26th of June 1990 when he was born to Odis and L’Tanya Shumpert in Oak Park, Illinois.
The pervasiveness of basketball as a sport in America led Iman Asante Shumpert to pick up the sports as a young boy in middle school and stick with it to adulthood, providing him a career and a means to enjoy the comforts life has to offer. In high school at Oak Park and River Forest High School, he established himself as a top talent, making it on the list of top-30 seniors in the country.
This high regard for his talents led him to join Georgia Tech after considering offers from different schools who wanted him in their basketball program. He spent three years at Georgia Tech where he set different records as a player for the college team and won several awards including making the All-ACC second team.
Following his declaration for the 2011 NBA Draft, he was selected by the New York Knicks and was drafted as the 17th overall player. His rookie season started with a rough start due to injuries but still managed to do well enough to earn a place in the top five Rookie of the Year list. For the New York Knicks, Iman Shumpert spent four seasons before he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
He joined the Cavaliers in the 2014/2015 season and won an NBA Championship in his second season with the team. While he was with the team, his career was a mixed bag of classic displays and being sidelined due to injuries and poor form. He was then traded to the Sacramento Kings for the 2018/2019 where he spent a few months before he was further traded to the Houston Rockets.
So far in his NBA Career, Iman Shumpert has played over 400 games and started over 200 of them with average points per game of 7.4 and 3.4 rebounds per game.
Net Worth and Salary
People might look at the salaries and net worth of basketball players and decry the wealth at their disposal but in a world where remuneration of staff is based on the price and demand for the product, it is fair compensation for their work in providing quality entertainment to viewers around the globe.
Since Iman Shumpert joined the league in 2011, earning his first salary of $3.34 million offered by the New York Knicks, he has gone on to sign mega contracts like a four-year $40 million contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers where he earned $9 million per year. With the Rockets, Iman Shumpert earns $11 million per year. This has helped him build a substantial net worth of $14 million.
Meet The Wife
Iman Shumpert is pretty notable outside of basketball through his wife, Teyana Taylor who is a singer, dancer, and actress. She has appeared in several music videos and she is signed to Good Music. She is also a songwriter who has written songs for Chris Brown and Omarion.
The couple got married on the 1st of October, 2016 but gave birth to their first child almost a year before on December 16, 2015. The circumstance of the birth was fascinating as the baby was delivered by Iman Shumpert himself after Teyana went into early labor. Their daughter is named, Iman Tayla Shumpert, Jr.
See Also: Jamal Murray Biography and Career Stats: Everything You Need To Know
Other Facts You Need to Know About Him
1. Not satisfied with the career of a basketballer, Iman Shumpert is also a reality television star who appears on Teyana and Iman.
2. He is also a rapper who has released an Extended Play (Ep) called Substance Abuse.
3. He was teammates with Evan Turner in middle school.
