Iman Shumpert Says Kayla Nicole Apologized After Teyana Taylor Beef

Iman Shumpert is speaking out for the first time about Kayla Nicole‘s public feud with his ex-wife, Teyana Taylor … revealing the influencer reached out to him to apologize after the shade sparked backlash.

Quick refresher … Nicole was on Angel Reese‘s podcast in 2024 and admitted a guy she was dating dumped her for a popular singer/actress. While Nicole never name-dropped, she did say she dressed up as the woman for Halloween to be petty.

Social media detectives figured it out … the costume was Taylor’s iconic outfit from Kanye West‘s “Fade” video.

Nicole’s diss ignited major backlash from fans and Taylor, who called her shade “distasteful” … but Shumpert — who played 12 seasons in the NBA — laughed it off on Shannon Sharpe‘s podcast, “Club Shay Shay.”

“I don’t know why she brought it up, honestly, but me and Kay are good friends,” Shumpert said on Wednesday. “It’s not like a thing where I’m going to be mad at her because she did that. She lowkey was just speaking her truth. It was a funny story, honestly.”

While Shumpert said he wasn’t offended by anything Nicole did, he revealed that she later contacted him and apologized … claiming it was completely random.

“She hit me up, and that’s what I do appreciate about Kay — she hit me up and was like, ‘I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I’m trying to tell a funny story on the spot. I did not mean to do that,” Shumpert said.

He also said he truly didn’t care about the controversy or Teyana’s reaction, saying that as long as he gets to see his two daughters, he’s good.