Aurora’s Mosley P-8 coach Jalen Snow named No. 1 in the Junior NBA for 2025

AURORA | An Aurora Public Schools basketball coach who has built his middle-school sports program around inclusion has been tabbed as the nation’s top scholastic coach in the Junior NBA.

Jalen Snow, who is a paraprofessional and coach at Edna and John W. Mosley P-8 School, was honored during a surprise announcement Tuesday at the school as the 2025 National Jr. NBA Scholastic Coach of the Year.

Snow is the first coach from Colorado to receive the award. The Denver Nuggets delivered the news in an assembly at the school’s gym.

Snow is known for his work with the school’s Unified Teams, which bring together students with and without disabilities on the same roster. He was honored as state NBA Jr. coach of the year in March, becoming a contender for the national honor.

“I’m a huge Nuggets fan, back through the Carmelo Anthony days,” Snow said after that announcement. “But I do think this is better than the championship.”

Now he’s won his own national championship.

The surprise capped a months-long process, when the Nuggets came to the school to announce in March that Snow was the top Jr. NBA Scholastic Coach for Colorado.

In June, he was tabbed as one of five finalists for the national award, along with coaches backed by the Atlanta Hawks, New Orleans Pelicans, Los Angeles Clippers and Utah Jazz.

The national winner was decided by a public vote, according to APS school officials.

On Tuesday, Snow told reporters he believed he was heading to meet students for a gym class. Instead, the Nuggets’ mascot, Rocky, members of the Nuggets Dance Team, colleagues, students and players were waiting to honor him.

James Fleming, a fellow coach and special education teacher at Mosley P-8, said earlier this year that he nominated Snow earlier after watching him lead a Unified practice the year before.

“Watching Jalen work with those kids that day and receiving that email felt perfect,” Fleming told school officials earlier this year. “I filled it out immediately. We don’t do it for the recognition, but I want Jalen to understand how much we appreciate him and how valuable his work is with our students.”

Snow said the recognition is something he will “forever remember.” He credits the school’s community for supporting him during his seven years on staff.

“I love the game, but what I love even more is the community we’ve built here,” he said in March. “It’s about giving every kid a chance to play, to be part of something.”

He said on Tuesday that the Mosley P-8 community “is like a family. From the parents to the custodians. We’re very close to each other.”

Snow said his dedication and intensity is nothing more than a reflection of that given by the students he works with every day.

“I want to give my thanks to all the students,” he said.