Jalen Rose

Former ABC/ESPN analyst and former 13-year NBA star Jalen Rose is one of the few professional athletes to maintain a high profile post-retirement. Jalen continues to show his versatility in the broadcast booth, in the entertainment world and as a philanthropist.

Jalen currently serves as a studio and game analyst for Turner Sports, covering both the NBA and men’s college basketball as well as taking part in the network’s NCAA Men’s March Madness coverage. He also serves as a Big Ten men’s college basketball analyst for NBC Sports.

Jalen was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, where he attended Southwestern High School and the University of Michigan. In college he was part of the legendary “Fab Five” where he and his teammates revolutionized the sport of basketball on the court and off by wearing baggy uniform shorts, black socks and black shoes. The first team in Final Four history to ever start five freshmen, they led the Wolverines to back to back NCAA Championship game appearances. In 1994, Jalen was drafted in the first round by the Denver Nuggets. Notable highlights from his 13-year NBA career include winning the NBA’s “Most Improved Player” and “Player of the Week” awards in 2000 and “Eastern Conference Player of the Week” accolades in 2005. As a member of the Indiana Pacers, his team appeared in three straight eastern conference finals including a trip to the NBA Finals in 2000. In 2003, he was honored with the Professional Basketball Writers Association Magic Johnson Award. Jalen was inducted into the Detroit High School Hall of Fame in 2013 and Michigan Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017.

Jalen made the bold leap in the midst of his NBA career in 2002, becoming a multi-faceted reporter for BET Mad Sports and an on-air personality for Fox Sports Net’s famed Best Damn Sports Show Period. Working with the Best Damn Sports Show Period for six years, the budding broadcast star developed his own lifestyle-oriented “Jammin’ With Jalen” segment. Shortly after retiring from basketball in 2007, Jalen – a mass communications major at U of M who ultimately earned his Bachelor of Science from the University of Maryland University College – went full throttle pursuing his passion in the multi-media, sports and entertainment world, signing with ABC/ESPN as an analyst. Covering a wide range of current events in the landscape of sports, he’s appeared on the network’s flagship shows SportsCenter, Mike and Mike in the Morning, First Take, SportsNation, Outside the Lines and Numbers Never Lie, as well as the basketball related shows Coast to Coast, NBA Tonight and College Game Day. In 2012, Jalen was named a studio analyst for NBA Countdown – ABC and ESPN’s pre-game show.

On January 28, 2016, Jalen & Jacoby Iadded a TV version of their show on ESPN2 which is comprised of segments from the radio show. Their chemistry, catchphrases and devoted following has led them to have the most downloaded sports podcast, per episode, as well as the most watched sport podcast on the internet.

A philanthropist who truly gives from the heart, Jalen has personally donated nearly $2 million via his charitable fund and to support his charter school in his hometown. In a movement to transform public education, he is also an ambassador for the American Federation for Children.

In 2007, Jalen created Three Tier Entertainment (TTE), an LA-based production and management company. TTE is committed to creating an artistic haven for actors, writers and directors. TTE produces smart, provocative commercial projects with a worldwide mass appeal for film, Television and the web. In 2011, TTE executive produced ESPN’s highest rated documentary “The Fab Five.”

Jalen released his first book in October 2015. One of the most outspoken and original voices in sports sounds off while revealing his incredible life story in Got to Give the People What They Want. This colorful collection of stories and opinions about basketball and life gives people the kind of insight and understanding they don’t get anywhere else in the sports world. GTGTPWTW is a New York Times Bestseller and made the list of Michigan Notable Books from 2016.