If you’re a card-carrying member of the Hoop Fans of America Club, chances are pretty good that you have a few preconceptions about Jalen Rose.

Preconceptions that the Chicago Bulls’ go-to-guy is a prima donna. Preconceptions that the funk-soaked former University of Michigan Fab Fiver is hard to the core. Preconceptions that he’s all about the ducats and not about the buckets.

But, ultimately, as is usually the case with most uninformed prejudgments, those erroneous beliefs should be detonated into particles. On the quick.

Acquired in last February 19th in a blockbuster deal with the Pacers that sent Ron Artest, Ron Mercer, Kevin Ollie and Brad Miller to beautiful downtown Indianapolis in exchange for Rose, Travis Best, Norman Richardson and a conditional second-round draft pick, the Bulls swingman is quite cognizant of his undeserved rep, and views the whole thing with a jaundiced-but-cheerful eye.

“I’m just Jalen,” he smiles. “I’m not the type to get caught up in who said what, or who’s sleeping with whom. I just go out and play the game and have as much fun as I can.”

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Spend a few minutes with Jalen Rose– yes, the very same Jalen Rose of the Titanic diamond stud earrings, the baggy baggy baggy shorts, and the periodic player-versus-coach squabble– and you’ll realize that the 29-year-old Detroit native matriculated not just from the University of Michigan, but also from the proverbial Institute of the Old School. His game– unadorned, unselfish, and unvaried– is straight-up old school. His off-the-court demeanor– he’s a gym rat who takes great pleasure in helping out with charitable causes, and consistently garners votes for a spot on the NBA’s “All Interview” team– is straight-up old school. Even his taste in music– he lists the Run D.M.C. hip-hop classic “Sucker M.C.’s” as one of his all-time fave tracks– is straight-up old school.

And Jalen’s attitude towards his place on the Bulls? Also old school.

“The trade happened so fast,” he says, “but the good thing is that it happened. When you’re playing for a team that’s in the playoff hunt [like the Pacers], and you circle [other] teams that you probably want to go play for, nobody circles the team that has the worst record overall. But somebody has to be an initiator to help build. We’ve got some young guys here, and I could hopefully bring some stability. Then, as we add to the roster, we could turn this thing around. It’s hard to come into a new situation and be something you’re not– I’ll just be myself and play as hard as I can. I’ve gotta go with what I’ve been doing for 29 years and see if it works. Whether it’s Shaquille O’Neal or Tim Duncan, whoever you bring into this situation, they’re not going to turn it around overnight. But hopefully this’ll be a start.”

And Jalen’s attitude towards winning? You guessed it– old school.

“With winning come the spoils. It doesn’t matter how much money you make, or how many women you have. The bottom line is everybody’s out there to win. It doesn’t mean as much if you have a phenomenal night, but your team doesn’t win.”

Continuing with the old school theme, Jalen Rose has proven himself to be the epitome of “keepin’ it real,” saying, “A lot of [players] do things that aren’t consistent with who they are, just to be liked. Guys who know me respect me for being true to myself, for not being a phony. When I do something, it’s from the heart.”

The two main principles of last season’s blockbuster trade between the Bulls and Pacers often tangled.

While the 6’8” dude-who-does-it-all has been performing at an All-Star level for the past three seasons, Rose– who was selected by the Denver Nuggets with the 13th pick in the 1994 NBA Draft before being dealt to the Pacers in 1996– proudly insists that he had to earn his place in the spotlight.

“Some guys don’t have to play well before they get seen or before their names get tossed around,” he says. “I didn’t get the red carpet treatment. [Nobody said], ‘Oh, here comes Jalen, everybody move out of the way, give him every call, every night.’ It didn’t happen that way for me. I had to earn my stripes, so I earned them. [But] that’s just the nature of the business. You can’t be mad at it and you can’t hate. You’ve just gotta go out there and understand who you are. You can’t get caught up in what the next man’s doing. You can’t worry about who everybody’s talking about, who’s the hot boy.”

Though he’ll never admit it, the former Wolverine– who, while at U-Mich, shared the floor with Chris Webber and Juwan Howard (now there’s a frontcourt)– is indeed one of the NBA’s “hot boys,” which is why Bulls Head Coach Bill Cartwright was delighted to welcome Jalen onto his roster.

“He’s a terrific scorer, he’s a terrific competitor, and he’s a terrific person,” Cartwright raves. “I’m very happy that we were able to get that caliber of a player, a player who’s been to a championship series [with the Pacers in 2000] and knows what it takes to win in this league. We know that we gave up some good players to get him, but this is a very positive move for us.”

The winner of the NBA’s 1999-2000 Most Improved Player award, Rose is a Magic Johnson-type who can play all five positions (okay, sticking him at center might be a stretch, but he could do it if called upon), and while Jalen will spend the majority of his minutes at shooting guard or small forward, Cartwright intends to utilize his new utility man all over the darn place.

“[With the triangle offense], the point guard, off guard, and small forward, these are interchangeable positions. We won’t worry about the issue of who’s at point, who’s at the two, or who’s at the three– those are all interchangeable in what we do offensively.”

Many were surprised that Bulls Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Jerry Krause pulled the trigger on this epic deal, but as it happens, he’s been lusting after Rose for many years.

“When Jalen was a senior at Michigan, we had a deal that didn’t quite [come together],” Krause says. “We were going to trade for the twelfth pick in the draft at that time, and Jalen would have been that choice.

Jalen Rose is picking up the tab all season long for groups of youngsters to attend Bulls games. Where do they sit? The Rose Garden, of course.

“Jalen Rose is a very good basketball player, very tough and very smart,” Krause continues. “He understands this game, and he has leadership qualities. I think Jalen blossomed tremendously under [former Pacers coach] Larry Bird, and I think that same sort of admiration that he held for Bird, Bill Cartwright is that same sort of person, and I think they’re going to get along great.”

One of the key reasons Krause was stoked to make the move is that he believes Rose will be a positive influence on baby Bulls Eddy Curry and Tyson Chandler.

“Jalen gets the ball to people, and he’s going to make our big people better. He’s especially going to make young Eddy and young Tyson better players.”

Current Bull/former Pacer Fred Hoiberg has shared the court with Rose and is ultra-psyched that his former teammate was brought into the Chicago fold.

“Jalen will always have your back,” Hoiberg says. “He’s a guy who’s very loyal to you, and he plays hard every game, regardless of the situation. He’s capable of a triple-double every night. He’ll bring a lot of versatility to the team, and we’re excited about having him.”

Cartwright is confident that Bulls fans will continue to appreciate Rose just as much as the Bulls players already do. “He’s the kind of guy that’s at the gym all the time, he loves basketball, and he always wants to do well. One thing everybody should know about Jalen Rose is that this kid is a competitor.” (For his part, Rose is well aware of his aggressive nature: “When I’m playing ball, I want to leave it all out on the court. I want my emotions to color the way I play. I’m not a good loser, and I don’t believe in moral victories.”) “We didn’t have a guy before who was “the guy,” Cartwright declares. “Now we do.”

Jalen is chomping at the bit to be The Guy not just for his personal fulfillment, but because he envisions himself wearing some championship-themed finger jewelry.

“[Being the first option] is something I’ve prepared for, something that every player wishes for– a lot of players can’t handle it. But the most important thing is trying to bring a seventh championship to Chicago. A lot of teams and organizations pay lip service to being a champion– but it’s hard to pay lip service to something you haven’t done. But the Bulls have been champions. Hopefully one day we’ll do it again.”

- by Alan Goldsher