Iman Shumpert Rated Kyrie Irving Third on His Own Teammates List. Here’s Why That’s Interesting.

Iman Shumpert has played with a lot of talent over his career. LeBron James. James Harden. Kevin Durant. Chris Paul. Dwyane Wade. And yes, Kyrie Irving — the guy he won a championship with in Cleveland.

So when Shumpert sat down for a blind rank of his former teammates on “Run It Back,” the order he came up with raised some eyebrows. He put Irving at No. 3. Behind James and Carmelo Anthony. J.R. Smith and Kendrick Perkins rounded out the top five.

Here’s the clip.

(via @RunItBackFDTV) pic.twitter.com/3lFqs4uIox

The Carmelo vs. Kyrie debate

Shumpert played with Anthony on the Knicks and again later with the Rockets. That relationship goes back further than his time in Cleveland, and clearly Melo left a lasting impression. But Irving is the one Shumpert went to three straight NBA Finals with. They won a ring together in 2016. They were teammates again in Brooklyn for two more years.

Some people will look at that and say Irving should be No. 2. Shumpert doesn’t see it that way, and honestly, Carmelo Anthony at his peak was an undeniable force. It’s not a crazy take. Just an interesting one.

Irving missed all of last season recovering from an ACL injury. All signs point to him being ready for next year, which is big for the Mavericks. There’s already chatter about how he’d mesh with Cooper Flagg, and we’ve seen Irving play alongside high-usage stars before. He did it with LeBron. He did it with Luka Doncic in 2024 when Dallas made the Finals.

The guy can adjust. He’s proven that.

Who else made Shumpert’s list?

Besides the top five, Shumpert had other notable teammates he didn’t rank in the initial clip. He played with Amar’e Stoudemire in New York, Jason Kidd in Dallas and New York, Kevin Love and Dwyane Wade in Cleveland, De’Aaron Fox in Sacramento, James Harden and Chris Paul in Houston, and Kevin Durant in Brooklyn. That’s a pretty wild resume for a guy who was primarily known as a defensive specialist.

For what it’s worth, Shumpert didn’t just base his rankings on winning. He went with who he felt was the best player on the floor. And LeBron being No. 1 was never in doubt. The only real question is whether Carmelo over Kyrie holds up. Based on reputation and scoring ability at their peaks, sure. Based on playoff results, maybe not.