Knicks G Iman Shumpert claims he’s not bothered by a Stephen A. Smith report New York owner James Dolan was pissed over his initial refusal to play in the Vegas Summer League. Confronted Wednesday by the NY Post’s Marc Berman, Shumpert declared speculation over his role next season a futile exercise (“tt’s up to Coach Woodie to make those decisions. He’s the guy who will be losing sleep on what guys he should play, lineups to play. I’m just going to be a piece of the puzzle”).
“That’s fine, that’s the media,’’ Shumpert said at a Delta appearance Wednesday to promote the U.S. Open. “ Things get blown up in this day and age, with social media. It’s crazy. That video got out there and stuff happens. I’m happy to be a Knick. I’m worried about business. ‘’
Asked if he knows for sure if Dolan is no longer irritated, Shumpert said, “I don’t know. It doesn’t concern me. I got to make sure we go out and play basketball.’’
In his lone summer-league game, Shumpert was 0 for 5, with 5 turnovers as starting point guard. The Knicks have sent coaches to Shumpert since he got back to China to work him out. Does he expect to see time at PG?
“That’s for my coaches,’’ Shumpert said. “I’ll continue to work on skills at point guard and shooting guard. I’m going to continue to perfect skills, period. It doesn’t matter what position they put me at. I just have to make sure and play right.’’