LAS VEGAS — Iman Shumpert decided not to wait for the lockout to end to get his first taste of NBA basketball.
The Knicks’ rookie guard from Georgia Tech is participating in the Impact Basketball Competitive League in Las Vegas while the players and owners attempt to end the NBA lockout. Approximately 70 NBA players are playing, trying to sharpen up their game or get themselves in shape in the event the lockout — in its third month — ends soon.
“It’s real important for me to be here,” Shumpert said after his team lost to a squad led by Jermaine O’Neal and Jared Dudley. “I need to be in shape and ready to go when they settle [the lockout]. And with all the guys that are here in Vegas, this was the best place for me to be.”
Just a handful of rookies are participating in the Impact League, which has eight teams and will play through next Friday. Shumpert, taken by the Knicks with the 17th overall pick in June’s NBA draft, is hoping at some point some of his teammates will join him in Las Vegas. Roger Mason and Shawne Williams are listed on the Impact League’s website but have yet to play. Chauncey Billups is supposed to play next week.
“It would be great to get with those guys and start building some chemistry,” Shumpert said. “But I don’t have any control over that. All I can do is make sure I’m accountable to myself.”
The Players Association has a meeting scheduled for this morning in Las Vegas to give the membership an update on the labor negotiations, which broke down Tuesday. Shumpert said he remains hopeful there will be a rookie season for him to play and get a chance to experience being in a game in Madison Square Garden.
“You’ve got to stay optimistic,” he said. “I’ve never been through anything like this. But I’m hoping the two sides can reach a deal and we can have basketball. I’m ready to get going.”
If the lockout continues into next month and training camp is postponed, Shumpert said the plan is for many of the Knicks to convene at the IMG Academy near Orlando and run their own workouts.
“I’ve talked to Amar’e [Stoudemire], ‘Melo [Carmelo Anthony] and a few of the other guys and they’re talking about all of us doing our own thing,” Shumpert said.
Shumpert, who paid his own way to Vegas to work out, said it has been worth his time and money.
“I’m learning a lot,” he said. “The veterans have taken us young guys under their wing, pointing things out. Even the guys you’re playing against, they’re helping you, showing you little things, giving you tips. It’s been great for me.”