Quick Facts
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Jaleel "J. J." O'Brien (born April 8, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the Salt Lake City Stars of the NBA Development League. He played college basketball for San Diego State and the University of Utah.
High school career
O'Brien attended the Alta Loma High School in Rancho Cucamonga, California. As a senior he averaged 24 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.1 steals, earning a first-team all-league selection, being nominated for the McDonalds All-American and ended as Alta Loma's all-time leading scorer with 2,200 points.
College career
O'Brien began his basketball career with Utah. In his freshman season, he played in 22 games starting 21 averaging 6.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 27.7 minutes after missing 9 games due to a broken foot.
The next year, O'Brien transferred to San Diego State and sat out that season. On his sophomore season, he played in all 34 games, starting 33 averaging 7.2 points on 52.6 percent shooting, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists. He scored in double figures in 10 of his final 16 outings, including six of his final 11 games, ending with 13 double-figures scoring. He was the Mountain West Player of the Week on January 28.
As a junior, O'Brien played and started 35 of 36 games averaging a career-high 7.8 points and 4.7 rebounds also setting career highs in minutes played (27.9), free-throw percentage (.644) and three-point field-goal percentage (.278). All of this earned him an All-Mountain West Honorable Mention.
As a senior with the Aztecs, O'Brien averaged 10.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists.
Professional career
2015–16 season
After going undrafted in the 2015 NBA draft, O'Brien joined the Utah Jazz for the Utah Summer League, where he saw action in all three games, averaging 4.0 points and 2.3 rebounds in 13.0 minutes. He also played with Utah at the Las Vegas Summer League, owning averages of 4.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 18.8 minutes. On August 28, 2015, he signed with the Jazz, but was later waived by the team on October 13 after appearing in one preseason game. On November 1, 2015, he was acquired by the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Development League as an affiliate player of the Jazz. On November 13, he made his professional debut in a 110–106 loss to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, recording 12 points, three rebounds, two steals and two blocks in 42 minutes.
On January 16, 2016, O'Brien signed a 10-day contract with the Jazz. He made his NBA debut later that night against the Los Angeles Lakers, recording one rebound and one steal in four minutes of action. On January 26, he returned to Idaho after his contract with the Jazz expired. At the season's end, he earned NBA D-League All-Rookie Team honors.
2016–17 season
In July 2016, O'Brien re-joined the Utah Jazz for the Utah Summer League, and then played for the Brooklyn Nets at the Las Vegas Summer League. On September 8, 2016, he signed with the Milwaukee Bucks, but was waived on October 22 after appearing in five preseason games. On October 31, he was re-acquired by the now Salt Lake City Stars.
Personal life
O'Brien is the son of Catherine O'Brien, a middle school teacher who played college basketball at Notre Dame. He has two sisters, Noelle and Malika.