Michael Jordan, who earned $500,00+ in 1984, was forced to join the NBA by his head coach

UNC head coach Dean Smith told Michael Jordan that he needed to join the NBA a year early.

Michael Jordan put the entire nation on notice when he decided to take the final shot to seal the game in his freshman year during the NCAA Championship game against Georgetown. That 1982 Championship would be one of the most iconic races for UNC because of that shot that turned MJ from ‘Mike’ to ‘Michael’.

He would maintain his offensive and defensive productivity in his second and third years. However, UNC would not win another Championship in either of those 2 years. While Jordan was playing in Chapel Hill, he was being scrutinized a lot by NBA scouts, and by the time he finished his sophomore year, he was a top 3-5 pick on everyone’s mock drafts.

The final touch for him to be a highly touted recruit was the 1984 Olympics. This is where Michael Jordan cemented himself as a borderline household name, bringing home gold for the USA.

When it came time to declare for the NBA Draft or return to UNC for his senior year, his head coach didn’t give him much choice at the time.

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Dean Smith advised Michael Jordan to skip his senior season.

Dean Smith is as connected to the University of North Carolina as Michael Jordan is to the Chicago Bulls. Smith coached the Chapel Hill Boys for 36 years from 1961 to 1997, winning two NCAA championships in the process.

So since Jordan was a major factor in me getting his first title from him, Smith always had a soft spot for him.

Dean’s affection for MJ was so great that he actually told him to skip his senior year of college baseball and jump straight into the NBA in the 1984 draft.
This would be a smart move for him as it would prevent him from sustaining any injuries. before reaching the league, which would reduce the chances of him retiring.

in a interview with Cigar Aficionado in 2005, Jordan said:

“It was Coach Smith’s call. I relied heavily on his knowledge. The NBA was an area in which he was not very well informed. My parents didn’t know anything about it either. And it was a great opportunity. Coach Smith felt that it would be the best opportunity for me to succeed in professional basketball.

Once he researched the situation for where I would go in the draft, I started weighing the pros and cons.”

Jordan would go on to praise him for making such a selfless call, as UNC would have to wait another 11 years to win a championship game after his departure. Although, in hindsight, this was absolutely the best decision to make, as Jordan made $550,000 in his rookie year and then, well, became the greatest player of all time.

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