Mikhail Dmitrievitch Prokhorov (Russian: Михаил Дмитриевич Прóхоров; born 3 May 1965) is a Russian billionaire and owner of the American basketball team, the Brooklyn Nets. After graduating from the Moscow Finance Institute he made his name in the financial sector and went on to become one of Russia's leading industrialists in the precious metals sector. While he was running Norilsk Nickel, the company became the world's largest producer of nickel and palladium. He is the former chairman of Polyus Gold, Russia's largest gold producer, and former President of ONEXIM Group. He resigned both positions when he entered politics in June 2011.

In December 2011, Prokhorov capped a year of higher-profile political activity in Russia with the December declaration that he would run as an independent in the 2012 presidential elections. Russian prime minister and former president Vladimir Putin was the favorite in the race at the time of Prokhorov's announcement.

He is the seventh richest man from Russia and the 57th richest man in the world according to the 2012 Forbes listing with a fortune estimated at US$13.2 billion.

Charles Peete "Charlie" Rose, Jr. (born January 5, 1942) is an American television talk show host and journalist. Since 1991 he has hosted Charlie Rose, an interview show distributed nationally by PBS since 1993. He has also co-anchored CBS This Morning since January 2012. Rose, along with Lara Logan, has hosted the revived CBS classic Person to Person, a news program during which celebrities are interviewed in their homes, originally hosted from 1953 to 1961 by Edward R. Murrow.

Rose was born in Henderson, North Carolina, the only child of Margaret Frazier and Charles Peete Rose, Sr., tobacco farmers who owned a country store. As a child, Rose lived above his parents' store in Henderson and helped out with the family business from age seven. Rose admitted in a Fresh Dialogues interview that as a child his insatiable curiosity was constantly getting him in trouble. A high school basketball star, Rose entered Duke University intending to pursue a degree with a pre-med track, but an internship in the office of Democratic North Carolina Senator B. Everett Jordan got him interested in politics. Rose graduated in 1964 with a bachelor's degree in history. At Duke, he was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order fraternity. He earned a Juris Doctor from the Duke University School of Law in 1968. He met his wife, Mary (née King), while attending Duke.

Michael Patrick "Mike" Francesa, Jr. (born March 20, 1954) is an American radio talk show host and television commentator. He is primarily known in his former role co-hosting the popular Mike and the Mad Dog show on WFAN in New York City. Francesa now hosts his own show, Mike's On: Francesa on the FAN, during the afternoon drive slot formerly occupied by Mike and the Mad Dog.

Francesa started his career by spending six years at College and Pro Football Newsweekly. He was hired by CBS Sports in 1982 as a researcher, focusing primarily on college sports. In CBS Sports, he was initially a behind-the-scenes, statistic-wielding editorial assistant, but network executives were so impressed by his knowledge that he was made a studio analyst for college basketball and football and acquired such a reputation that The New Yorker termed him "Brent Musburger’s brain."

When he was a studio analyst at CBS Sports, he said the most common complaint he heard was about his New York accent.

ESPN tried to lure Francesa as its studio expert on college football, college basketball and NFL in 1991, but he declined the offer.

Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is an American-born British Conservative Party politician and journalist, who has been the elected Mayor of London since 2008. He was previously the Member of Parliament for Henley and editor of The Spectator magazine.

Johnson was educated at Primrose Hill Primary School, the European School of Brussels, Ashdown House School, Eton College, and Balliol College, Oxford, where he read Literae Humaniores. He began his career in journalism with The Times, and later moved on to The Daily Telegraph where he became assistant editor. He was appointed editor of The Spectator in 1999. In the 2001 general election he was elected to the House of Commons and became one of the most conspicuous politicians in the country. He has also written several books.

Under Michael Howard, Johnson briefly served on the Conservative front bench as the Shadow Minister for the Arts from April 2004 until November 2004. When David Cameron was elected leader of the Conservative Party in 2005, Johnson was re-appointed to the front bench as Shadow Minister for Higher Education and resigned as editor of The Spectator.

Avery Johnson (born March 25, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player and current head coach of the National Basketball Association (NBA) team Brooklyn Nets. He has also coached the Dallas Mavericks, leading them to their first NBA Finals appearance and four consecutive 50+ win seasons. During his playing days, Johnson was known as the "Little General" for his small (by NBA standards) stature, his leadership skills as a point guard and floor general, and his close friendship with former San Antonio Spurs teammate David "The Admiral" Robinson.

As a high school senior in 1983, Johnson led New Orleans' St. Augustine High School to a 35–0 record and the Class 4A Louisiana State Championship. Johnson matriculated at New Mexico Junior College before moving on to Cameron University, and finally Southern University, with whom in his senior season in 1988 he led the NCAA with 13.3 assists per game, a senior and all-time record that still stands. Upon graduation in 1988 Johnson was not selected in the NBA Draft. After a summer season with the USBL's Palm Beach Stingrays, however, Johnson was signed by the Seattle SuperSonics and managed to spend the next 16 years playing in the NBA, including stints with the Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors, and Dallas Mavericks. A true journeyman as a player, occasionally being traded, or even waived, mid-season, Johnson is best known for his time with the San Antonio Spurs (1991, 1992–1993, 1994–2001), particularly his integral role on the 1999 Spurs team that won the NBA championship against the New York Knicks in which he hit the championship-winning shot in Game 5. The San Antonio Spurs retired Johnson's number 6 on December 22, 2007 in a home game against the Los Angeles Clippers. He was also inducted into the "San Antonio Sports Hall of Fame" on February 20, 2009.