Most likely, this is a negotiating tactic. The smart money is on Iman Shumpert pulling on the wine and gold of the Cleveland Cavaliers when next season starts.
But the door is open to other teams.
Shumpert started talking with the Cavaliers, and that hasn’t gone where he wanted, so the unrestricted free agent is going to start listening to other offers, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports.
Sources: Cavaliers restricted free agent Iman Shumpert will start taking meetings with teams. So far, unable to reach deal with Cleveland.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2015
The Cavaliers have had a strong off-season so far, keeping Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson in new deals.
Shumpert looked more comfortable as a defense-first player off the bench for the Cavaliers then he did asked to do more for the Knicks. He’s not going to provide much on the offensive end — he scored 9.3 points per game but shot just 40.9 percent for the Knicks, before Phil Jackson shipped him to Cleveland.
That said, a number of teams could use what he brings — good wing defenders are valuable. Plenty of other teams will be willing to talk.
In the end, most likely the Cavs would match or beat any offer. But Shumpert is going to try and use that leverage.