LeBron James’ former teammate’s mistake that led to exit from $56 billion Uber

NBA veteran Iman Shumpert was an early investor in one of the largest ride-sharing companies, Uber but would forgo his shares before the company had an IPO of $120 billion.

The 17th pick in the 2011 draft, Iman Shumpert, was selected by the New York Knicks. While he did enjoy initial success during his career, the 32-year-old’s career was short-lived, with his biggest highlight being the iconic 2016 championship with LeBron James and the Cavaliers.

Unfortunately, things went downhill for Shumpert post his exit from Cleveland in 2018. The 6ft 5′ guard hasn’t played a game since February 2021. With no team willing to sign him, the former Cavs guard tried his hand at rap music, followed by participating in the reality show Dancing with the Stars, which he won.

The former champion made over $48 million during his 10-years in the league, enough to invest. Some of his handful bets include companies like Spiritual Gangster and Calaxy. While many may not know, Shumpert was an early investor in the cab aggregator giant Uber.

Also read: $30 million man Iman Shumpert hit the jewelry store as soon as he joined LeBron James and the Cavaliers

Surprisingly, Shumpert wasn’t interested in the long game, ending up selling his shares, which could have been worth millions.

Iman Shumpert’s lost potential in a 56 billion dollar company.

While many would assume Shumpert would have a lifelong regret of not having kept his shares of Uber, this isn’t the truth. The former shooting guard, who sold his shares to buy art, had the following belief for his decision.

Why invest in someone else’s idea that will make them billions, when you’ll only make a few million?

Had Shumpert waited till the IPO, his shares would be worth millions, given the $120 billion valuation.  Based on a $100K investment, the former champion’s shares would have been worth $337 million.

This doesn’t bother Shumpert, who loves flipping investments and is currently building up his music career. The following Twitter thread shall provide a more deep understanding of Shumpert’s past association with Uber during its initial finance seeding.

It’s heartening to see Shumpert maintain an optimistic outlook despite losing an opportunity to make millions.

Also read: Iman Shumpert arrested for marijuana possession could face up to 2-years in jail and $10K fine