CLEVELAND — Cavaliers shooting guard Iman Shumpert can joke about it now, but it was no laughing matter when his fiancée went into premature labor in their bathroom.
Iman Shumpert
Iman Tayla Shumpert Jr. arrived one month early, being born at 6:42 a.m. Wednesday as her father assisted Teyana Taylor in the delivery. He said mother and daughter are both doing well and were released from the hospital Saturday.
“I’m Shump Man the M.D., baby,” Shumpert said Sunday following Cleveland’s 108-86 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. “What can I say? I got the softest hands in the business. Junior just wanted to land in my hands.”
News of the couple’s adventure spread worldwide after Taylor posted a photo of her husband and daughter on Instagram.
Many media outlets subsequently obtained the 911 call that Shumpert dialed, which made the 25-year-old partners instant celebrities on entertainment programs and websites.
“Her water broke when I was on the phone with the EMT, and I was going a little crazy at the time,” he recalled. “During the transfer (to another medical professional), she took two pushes and my daughter came right to me.”
Since an ambulance was still five minutes away from their suburban home, Shumpert had another critical responsibility. He had to tie off Iman Jr.’s umbilical cord, but was too emotional to respond to the instructions.
Taylor wrote that he had “eyes full of tears and (was) barely able to speak,” which Shumpert confirmed.
“I was kind of in a blank state about what was going on, so they kept asking me, ‘Sir, are you there?’ before I knew I had to snap out of it,” he said. “All I was thinking about was that I was holding my daughter.”
When Shumpert regained his focus, he said he panicked because there was no obvious item to use on the umbilical cord. He improvised by using a pair of red Beats by Dre headphones.
“I was looking at all of my shoes, but I knew untying the laces would take too long,” he said. “Then I saw those headphones, just sitting on my desk. It seemed like the right thing to do. Fortunately, it worked.”
Now that Shumpert is back with the Cavaliers, his life has returned to normal. He hopes that no other couples go through a similar experience, but would like to see them be more prepared than he was in an emergency.
“That’s the first thing you should be taught in childbirth classes — what to do if the baby comes early,” he said. “Seriously, what could be more important than that? I feel great, wonderful now, but that whole day was something we’ll always have to talk about.”
Making a point
Cavaliers point guard Mo Williams (right thumb sprain) sat out his second straight game, giving him five absences due to injury. He was sidelined from Nov. 19-23 with a sore right ankle.
When he returns, Cleveland will have an abundance of depth at the position with Kyrie Irving and Matthew Dellavedova in the rotation.
Small forward LeBron James believes the competition will bring out the best in each player.
“Of course, Kyrie is our point guard, but we have a three-headed monster in Mo and Delly,” he said. “Those guys are going to dictate what we do.”
Williams is the third-leading scorer on the team at 13.0 points, while Dellavedova is averaging 9.0 points. Irving had 12 points in his season debut against Philadelphia.
“Obviously, I am going to play on the ball, as well,” James added. “I’m a pretty good pick-and-roll player and I make some pretty good decisions with the ball. But those guys are going to get us into the offense and put us in the position to succeed.”
Learning curve
Matthew Dellavedova
Dellavedova made 4-of-6 3-pointers against the 76ers, boosting his season percentage to .461. The only players in the shooting better beyond the arc are San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard (.490) and Washington’s Jared Dudley (.479).
“With guys like Bron and Kev (Kevin Love) and having Kyrie back now, they draw so much attention, I just have to be ready to shoot,” said Dellavedova, who ranks 22nd in the NBA in assists at 5.4 per game.
The popular Australian credits his marksmanship to fine-tuning his shooting motion over the summer. He didn’t need to make adjustments to his stroke, only his release.
“I didn’t change my mechanics, it was just about speeding it up,” he said. “There were times last season when I had to get a shot off, but I couldn’t make it happen, so I just tried to quicken my release.”
Dellavedova shot .368 on 3-pointers as a rookie, then improved to .407 last season.
Minor details
76ers center Jahlil Okafor traveled to Canton to attend the NBA D-League game between the Charge and Erie on Saturday night.
Okafor and Canton point guard Quinn Cook were college teammates at Duke, prompting the 6-foot-11 pivot to sit courtside to cheer him on.
“My brother surprised me at my game,” Cook tweeted along with a photo of the duo. “Real family.”
Okafor had nine points and eight rebounds against the Cavaliers.
Cleveland recalled shooting guard Joe Harris from the Charge, but he was a healthy inactive against Philadelphia.
The second-year pro, who is averaging 16.4 points in 10 games with Canton, has only played 15 minutes for the Cavaliers this season.
Contact Brian Dulik at brisports@hotmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrianDulik
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