Topic: Malik Rose

Malik Jabari Rose (born November 23, 1974 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American professional basketball player with the Oklahoma City Thunder of the NBA.

Rose graduated from Overbrook High School in Philadelphia, the same high school as Wilt Chamberlain. He graduated from Drexel University with All-American honors after leading the Dragons to their lone NCAA Tournament victory with an upset of the University of Memphis 75-63. At Drexel, Malik averaged over 16 points and 12 rebounds per game throughout his four-year college career. He was a student teacher at Robert E. Lamberton School.

Rose was drafted in 1996 in the second round by the Charlotte Hornets. Rose is the second Drexel basketball player to participate in the NBA, following Michael Anderson. He was traded to the San Antonio Spurs in 1997, and quickly became one of their more popular players due to his displays of hustle, defense, and skill despite being undersized. Rose was on the Spurs' NBA championship teams in 1999 and 2003. On February 24, 2005, Rose was traded along with a pair of first-round draft picks to the New York Knicks for Nazr Mohammed and Jamison Brewer, much to the dismay of Spurs fans. After being relegated to a minor supporting role for the Knicks for four years, Rose was traded from the Knicks to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Februrary 19, 2009 for Chris Wilcox.