Mustaf was born in Whiteville, North Carolina where he was raised by his mother Lilly Mae George.

[2][3] Jerrod Mustaf's father, a self-described "black militant" would have a significant impact on his life, encouraging him to be a community leader and activist.

While Mustaf was playing for the Phoenix Suns, on July 22, 1993, his alleged girlfriend Althea Hayes was found shot to death in her apartment in Glendale, Arizona.

[14] On the night Hayes was murdered, she phoned a friend and told them that Mustaf's cousin, Lavonnie Wooten, was in her apartment and that she was frightened of him.

[15] An off-duty police officer reported seeing both Mustaf and Wooten in the apartment complex where Hayes lived on the night she died.

[16] In 2001, he was charged with assault for attacking his then partner Shalamar Muhammad Mustaf, and later violating a protective order related to the case.

[23] In Maryland, Mustaf led the Take Charge program, a non-profit founded by his father designed to keep vulnerable teens out of the criminal justice system.

[18][24] He would continue to work with at risk youth and run basketball camps for the remainder of his life.

[25] In 2006, he was nominated Sports Ambassador of Gambia where he advocated for greater support for the development of basketball in the country.