Michael Jordan, the most dominant basketball player on Earth, mostly dubbed “The GOAT,” wasn’t just a perfect ballplayer. As it turns out, he was also a great student during his school and college years.
Let’s check out Michael Jordan’s GPA at the University of North Carolina and his other college accomplishments, which I’m sure he has many of.
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MJ’s High School GPA
Michael Jordan went to Emsley A. Laney High School in Wilmington, North Carolina, and he maintained a GPA of 4.5 there. He was a standout in baseball and other sports. Michael was an impressive student-athlete who also understood how to juggle sports and studies.
As the famous story goes, Michael Jordan switched from baseball to basketball as he didn’t get selected for his high school’s basketball team as a sophomore and that hurt him in a way that he switched his passion from baseball to basketball, and dedicated the rest of his life to mastering the game.
During Jordan’s junior year, MJ became a star high school basketball player. He scored 35 points in his first High School varsity game and averaged 25.4 points per game, 12 rebounds per game, and 5.3 assists per game. He was a highly recruited athlete and would go on to sign with the University Of North Carolina before his senior year.
These accomplishments are even more remarkable given the fact that Jordan was cut from the basketball team as a sophomore earlier.
Michael’s College Academics and Achievements
Jordan majored in Cultural Geography at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and was able to maintain a spectacular GPA of 4.5 throughout his college career. The Goat had it all figured out, or at least made it look that way.
His academic and athletic achievements at UNC made him one of the most decorated players in college basketball history, and one of the greatest of all time. Here’s a summary of MJ’s achievements in college-
- NCAA College Player of the Year (1983, 1984)
- Consensus First Team All-American (1983, 1984)
- NCAA National Championship (1982)
Draft Year
Michael Jordan was drafted in the 1984 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls as a third overall pick after Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets) and Sam Bowie (Portland Trail Blazers).
There were some concerns about picking Jordan at the time as he was a shooting guard, and they weren’t typically respected as the franchise players at the time.
However, despite it all, Michael proved everyone wrong with his 6 NBA championship rings and 5 finals MVP titles. He went on to become a global icon, a brand, and a billionaire and seemed to do the impossible feats with ease, like flying through the air.
Conclusion
Air Jordan is today a multi-billion dollar company. Michael is renowned for his strong grasp of basic fundamentals and principles. These strong foundations from his days in high school spilled over into his college career, and finally in his life. He was known for his competitive drive and I am sure that also played a factor in his academics, not just sports or business.
