During the finale, Shumpert and Karagach dominated the dance floor with a cha-cha and foxtrot routine to Earth, Wind & Fire's “September”—a performance so impressive that it earned them perfect scores from all four judges. Even Bruno dubbed the NBA star “king of the ballroom,” adding that the "eagle has risen to new heights."
The duo then returned to perform their hip-hop freestyle to a mashup of "Lose Control" by Missy Elliott and "Bounce" by DJ Client, which earned them another set of perfect 10s. After their dance, Julianne Hough said, "That was my favorite freestyle I have ever seen in 30 seasons." Honestly, same.
While he appeared on The Real, Shumpert revealed that his dance partner wasn't the only one giving him pointers behind the scenes. He also has his wife, Teyana Taylor, to thank. He explained, "Daniella would give me structure tips, like, 'This is the form, this is the point system. This is how, this is why.' Teyana gives me, 'Alright, you got your steps? Now sell it.' She's like, 'Yeah, I get it. This is the move. But how does it look when you do the move?'"
After Shumpert's victory, Taylor celebrated the news on Instagram with a sweet message. She wrote, "THE LEVEL OF PROUD I AM IS TEWWWWWW MUCH TO EVEN PUT IN WORDS!!! WOW! Congrats @imanshumpert @daniellakaragach i am proud but NOT shocked!!!! YALL GOT THAT! AS YOU SHOULD! WELL DESERVED!! Thank you for trusting one another, believing in one another, killing that shit every week & most importantly foot working that mutha f***ing mirror ball home!!!!!! PERIOD! Congrats guys!!! Thank you @dancingabc & all the fans and friends that VOTEDDDDDDDDD every single week!!! You are appreciated."
Cheers to Shumpert and Karagach on a very well-deserved win!
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