At a time when basketball is intersecting with purpose, Jalen Rose is being honored for more than the points he's scored on the court but being honored for the lives he's helped transform off of it.
This September, at the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., Rose will be presented with the 2025 Ice Cube Impact Award, which is awarded to those who leverage basketball to improve society. The second annual award, started last year by Hip-Hop icon and BIG3 league co-founder Ice Cube, was developed to spotlight changemakers who are giving heavily in impactful, community-based ways.
"Jalen has always taken the opportunity throughout his career to be a force for good," Ice Cube said. "Not only does he give back to his communities by raising money, working with kids, and, most importantly, playing basketball, but he leads by example.
The former NBA star and current analyst founded the Jalen Rose Leadership Academy in his native Detroit in 2011. The tuition-free charter high school doesn't merely unlock its doors but unlocks futures. With college readiness at its core, the school provides AP courses, dual enrollment, summer courses, and college tours. Rose, who remains the board's president, is now the driving force behind a $20 million capital campaign to expand the school's reach.
"I am incredibly grateful and honored to receive the Ice Cube Impact Award from the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame," said Rose. "Cube is the family, and we both share an unparalled work ethic and dedication to our community."
That all-for-one spirit of giving back is precisely what the Impact Award represents. It is a realization that greatness neither ends at buzzer-beaters and championship rings nor at mentoring, advocacy, or putting in the work where it counts the most.
Outside the academy, Rose's record of community service is extensive. He's a board member at the National Basketball Players Association Foundation, collaborates with grassroots groups such as New Era Detroit, the latter of which, coincidentally, also works with the Detroit Pistons in various city initiatives and even created a scholarship endowment at the University of Michigan, where his path originated.
John L. Doleva, the president and chief executive of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, considers the moment more than a ceremony; he sees it as a celebration of ideals. "Ice Cube's reach is not just entertainment but a cultural phenomenon that spans generations." Doleva added, "In an era that has lost touch with the rhythms of the middle class, Ice Cube is a living footnote of what once was, whose image continues to impact and elevate young minds worldwide."
LuncheonTony Spina, vice president of the board of trustees, presents Iverson with his 2019 Charles Barkley Lifetime Achievement Award on Saturday, September 6, during Enshrinement Weekend, a night dedicated to blending basketball greatness with appreciation.
In a world that frequently values flash over foundation, Rose reminds us that the real wins often come when the lights are off but the work continues.
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