The three basketball positions normally employed by organized basketball teams are guard, forward, and center. More specifically, they can be classified into the five positions: point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, and center. The rules of basketball do not mandate them, and in informal games they are sometimes not used. They are grouped into two conceptual units: the offensive and defensive.

The point guard, also known as the "1", is typically the team's best ball handler and passer. The point guard is a position equivalent to that of a playmaking midfielder in football, setter in volleyball, a quarterback in American football, or a center in ice hockey, where they are often responsible for directing plays and passing the ball. This lends the player a role similar to a captain, as good point guards increase team efficiency and generally have a high number of assists. Some of the prototypical point guards in the NBA's recent years include Tony Parker for the four-time champion San Antonio Spurs, Derrick Rose for the Chicago Bulls, Jason Kidd for the Dallas Mavericks, Steve Nash for the Phoenix Suns. Other examples include Chauncey Billups, Russell Westbrook, Rajon Rondo, Chris Paul, Stephen Curry, Deron Williams, and Jeremy Lin. Examples of players earlier in the league's history are Magic Johnson, Bob Cousy, and John Stockton. The point guard is typically the smallest player on his/her squad. At the NBA level, most point guards are 6 feet (1.83 m) to 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m). In Europe, point guards' height ranges from 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 m) to 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m), with a few exceptions.

Jalen Anthony Rose (born January 30, 1973) is a retired American professional basketball player and current sports analyst for the television network ESPN. In college, he was a member of the University of Michigan Wolverines' "Fab Five" (along with Chris Webber, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson) that reached the 1992 and 1993 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship games as both Freshmen and Sophomores. Rose played in the NBA for six teams, most notably alongside Reggie Miller on the Indiana Pacers teams which made three consecutive Eastern Conference finals, including the 2000 NBA Finals.

As a star at Southwestern High School in Detroit, Rose obtained a high profile and can even be seen at a high school All-American camp in the documentary film, Hoop Dreams. Rose attended the University of Michigan where the Wolverines reached two NCAA Finals games in 1992 and 1993, finishing as national runners up both times. Rose was a part of Wolverines coach Steve Fisher's legendary 1991 recruiting class, dubbed the "Fab Five". He led the Fab Five in scoring his freshman year, averaging 19 points per game, and set the school freshman scoring record with 597 total points. Aside from being the most outspoken of the Fab Five, Rose was also their point guard and leader. During his career, he racked up over 1700 points, 400 rebounds, 400 assists, and 100 steals. Of the players called before the grand jury (Robert Traylor, Webber, Rose, Maurice Taylor, and Louis Bullock) in the University of Michigan basketball scandal, he was the only one not listed as having received large amounts of money.

Skip Bayless (born John Bayless II on December 4, 1951) is a sports journalist and television personality. Bayless regularly appears on ESPN2's ESPN First Take and its afternoon show 1st and 10. Bayless previously wrote regular columns for ESPN.com and its "Page 2" section. He is perhaps best known for his strong opinions and sometimes controversial stances on professional athletes.

Bayless was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The first child of John and Levita Bayless, he was named John Edward Bayless II on his birth certificate, but his father immediately began calling him Skip or Skipper. The name stuck, and Skip Bayless was never called John by his parents. He eventually had his name legally changed to Skip. His brother is the chef, restaurateur and TV personality Rick Bayless.

Bayless as a junior, along with Jerry Waugh, Jim Hill, and Tony Robinson led Junior Varsity (JV)'s Northwest Classen High School basketball team.

Bayless averaged 1.4 points per game as a senior playing basketball at Northwest Classen High School.