Jalen Hood-Schifino
Jalen Hood-Schifino | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 19, 2003 United States |
| Occupation | Professional basketball player |
| Years active | 2023–present |
| Known for | Playing for the Philadelphia 76ers and Indiana Hoosiers |
Jalen Hood-Schifino ( ; born June 19, 2003) is an American professional basketball athlete who most recently played for the Philadelphia 76ers in the National Basketball Association (NBA) under a two-way contract with the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League. He competed at the collegiate level for the Indiana Hoosiers and was recognized as a top-tier five-star and four-star recruit in the 2022 recruiting class.
High school career
Hood-Schifino's high school journey included attendance at three different institutions. He began at Northside Christian Academy in Charlotte, North Carolina, then transferred to Combine Academy in Lincolnton, North Carolina during his sophomore year. Prior to his junior season, he moved to the nationally renowned Montverde Academy in Florida, where he was coached by Kevin Boyle. While at Montverde, he contributed to back-to-back GEICO High School Basketball National Championships in 2021 and 2022.
He earned all-star recognition and participated in the prestigious Jordan Brand Classic, where he tallied 14 points including three three-pointers. In the off-season before entering college basketball, Hood-Schifino played for Team Thad, an AAU organization founded by NBA veteran Thaddeus Young, and trained alongside professionals such as Paul George from the Los Angeles Clippers in California.
Hood-Schifino attributed his readiness for college-level competition to Montverde’s demanding daily practice regimen, which he described as being on par with collegiate training standards.
Recruiting
While enrolled at Combine Academy, Hood-Schifino initially committed to coach Jeff Capel and the Pittsburgh team, marking a notable local recruitment success. However, after completing his sophomore year, he reopened his recruitment process and drew attention from the Indiana Hoosiers following the arrival of coach Mike Woodson in 2021. In August 2021, Hood-Schifino pledged his commitment to Indiana as their highest-ranked recruit since Romeo Langford in 2018 and ranked ninth overall since 1998.
College career
Prior to starting his freshman year at Indiana, Hood-Schifino was projected as a potential first-round NBA draft pick and was honored by media as the Big Ten preseason freshman of the year.
During his only season (2022–23) with the Hoosiers, he secured Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors along with a third-team All-Big Ten selection. Across 32 games—all starts—he averaged 13.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.7 assists over 33.1 minutes per contest. A standout performance came on January 8, 2023, when he scored 33 points—the highest single-game total by an Indiana freshman since 2007—and later set a new Indiana freshman scoring record with 35 points against Purdue on February 25.
On March 31, 2023, Hood-Schifino declared for the NBA draft, choosing to relinquish three remaining years of collegiate eligibility.
Los Angeles Lakers (2023–2025)
Hood-Schifino was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers with the 17th overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft.
Throughout his rookie and sophomore campaigns, he frequently played with the South Bay Lakers in the NBA G League. He made his NBA debut on November 27, 2023, during a game that ended in a 138–94 defeat against the Philadelphia 76ers. On March 21, 2024, Hood-Schifino underwent a lumbar microdiscectomy procedure; however, no specific timetable has been provided regarding his return to play.
Philadelphia 76ers (2025)
On February 2, 2025, Hood-Schifino was included in a significant trade to the Utah Jazz, along with two second-round draft selections for 2025 originally from the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks. This transaction also featured notable players such as Luka Dončić, Maxi Kleber, and Anthony Davis. Despite joining the Jazz, Hood-Schifino was released on February 7 without appearing in any games.
Subsequently, on February 28, 2025, he secured a two-way contract with the Philadelphia 76ers.
NBA
|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers | 21 || 0 || 5.2 || .222 || .133 || .600 || .6 || .4 || .1 || .1 || 1.6 |- | style="text-align:left;" rowspan=2| | style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers | 2 || 0 || 7.1 || 1.000 || || 1.000 || .5 || .5 || .0 || .5 || 2.0 |- | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 13 || 0 || 23.2 || .371 || .304 || .842 || 2.0 || 2.8 || .4 || .5 || 7.8 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career | 36 || 0 || 11.8 || .329 || .262 || .732 || 1.1 || 1.3 || .2 || .3 || 3.9
College
|- | style="text-align:left;"| 2022–23 | style="text-align:left;"| Indiana | 32 || 32 || 33.1 || .417 || .333 || .776 || 4.1 || 3.7 || .8 || .3 || 13.5
Personal life
Hood-Schifino is the son of Glenn Hood, who played quarterback at Santa Monica College, and Adrianne "Angel" Hood-Schifino, a former basketball player at Lock Haven University. During his middle school years, his family moved from Pittsburgh to Charlotte. His competitive spirit was nurtured through basketball games with older cousins Sherron and DeAndre Schifino, both of whom competed at the collegiate level in basketball and football respectively.
In connection with a student-athlete compensation program, Hood-Schifino became an ambassador for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Indiana, engaging in public appearances and social media campaigns to promote the organization.
His uncle Drew competed in college basketball for the West Virginia Mountaineers and California Vulcans before embarking on a professional career, while another uncle, Jake Schifino, played in the NFL for the Tennessee Titans.