Before dominating the NBA hardwood, Michael Jordan represented the University of North Carolina for three years. During his three years as a Tar Heel, Jordan impressed the college basketball community by achieving several outstanding feats. However, the 6ft 6” shooting guard was not the player on the campus that everybody idolized. Back in 2003, Kenny Smith revealed that MJ was merely the second fiddle to Sam Perkins.
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Michael Jordan had an incredible three-year stint with the North Carolina Tar Heels. It didn’t take MJ long before announcing his presence to the basketball world. As a freshman, Jordan recorded 13.5 points and 4.4 rebounds. However, he cemented his legacy by knocking down a game-winning shot against Georgetown in the 1982 NCAA Championship bout. According to Mike, that was the shot that transformed him from “Mike to Michael Jordan”.
Kenny Smith reveals how Michael Jordan was the second fiddle at UNC
During the 2003 All-Star Weekend, Kenny Smith was asked a few questions regarding his college days. Out of the four years spent at the University of North Carolina, The Jet was teammates with Michael Jordan for the 1983-1984 season.
During Smith’s freshman year, the future Chicago Bulls star lodged 19.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Despite putting up some jaw-dropping stats, Kenny revealed to Ernie Johnson Jr. that it was Sam Perkins who was actually the player everyone on campus “idolized”. As for MJ, he was merely Perkins’ “second fiddle”.
“Sam Perkins was actually the player that everyone idolized at the school. Michael was kind of like a little bit of a second fiddle because Sam was a four-year All-American as well.”
Sam Perkins was a solid role player during his NBA career, at best. However, he was an incredible prospect while playing for Coach Dean Smith’s team. The 6ft 9” forward was a Tar Heel for four years and averaged a staggering 15.9 points and 8.6 rebounds.
On the other hand, Mike recorded 17.7 points and 5 rebounds. Jordan did show sparks of being an all-time great. However, nobody could’ve predicted that he would go on to become one of the greatest basketball players ever.
Dean Smith motivated MJ to declare for the 1984 NBA Draft
Michael Jordan played for three years at UNC and was ready to come back for his fourth and final year. As a coach for the Tar Heels, there was no better news for Dean Smith. However, Coach Smith did what he thought was best for Michael and asked his star player to declare for the 1984 Draft.
“It was Coach [Dean] Smith’s call. I relied so much on his knowledge. The NBA was an area where I wasn’t too knowledgeable. My parents weren’t knowledgeable about it, either. And it was a great opportunity. Coach Smith felt that it would be the best opportunity for me to make it in professional basketball,” Jordan said.
Michael Jordan would go on to wreak havoc in the NBA. In only his rookie campaign, MJ scored 28.2 points per game alongside 6.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists.
