LeBron James was famously drafted into the NBA straight out of high school, but if he hadn’t been “The Chosen One” on the courts, would his academic results have been enough for him to get into a college of his choosing? While it seems he graduated with a 2.8 GPA, it’s safe to say there was a ton of fluctuation.
We’ll start with a report from back in 2002, when James was still in high school. At the time, Sports Illustrated reported that the basketballer had a GPA of 2.8. Not the best grade, but not the worst, either, and odds are he’d have gotten into a few colleges. By the end of the year, ESPN was singing a very different tune. The outlet reported that James had a very impressive 3.2 GPA. The following January, James himself told the audience at the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards of his academic accomplishments. “I’m on the honor roll with a 3.5 grade-point average,” he humble-bragged (via ESPN).
All that said, in April 2024, ClutchPoints revealed in a TikTok video that he ultimately graduated with a 2.8 GPA. Apparently, once James knew he would be drafted, he stopped paying as much attention to his academics — and tbh, we’re not shocked by that. However, the attention he received at that time probably played a role in his focus, too.
LeBron became a superstar while he was in high school
That LeBron James’ grades yo-yoed as much as they did in the last year of his high school career isn’t particularly surprising when one takes into account just how crazy his life had become at that point. Longtime fans may remember that James actually made the cover of Sports Illustrated while he was still in high school. Many of his high school basketball games also had a major media presence, and James got a ton of freebies, like sneakers, which ESPN reported he had a habit of handing out to classmates during lunch.
Of course, the attention came with some downsides, too — and it’s likely that played a role in James’ GPA dropping by the time he graduated. As many know, James was embroiled in a legal battle in 2003 that saw him banned from playing high school basketball. According to the presiding judge, James’ acceptance of sports jerseys meant he no longer qualified as an amateur athlete.
The ruling subsequently overturned that April, meaning he could play for his school. However, as he’d told CBS, it had been a tough experience for a high schooler to go through, especially as he felt he had let down his team. “If I had known I was violating anything I would have never done it. I would have never jeopardized my eligibility. I would have never jeopardized my team,” he said.
LeBron opened his own school
Between the stress brought on by the lawsuit and his own desire to give his all to basketball, like we said, LeBron James’ GPA had decreased from 3.5 to 2.8 by the time he graduated high school. Of course, that didn’t exactly stand in his way of success, and today he’s a billionaire, having reached the major financial milestone back in 2022. That said, he’s never underplayed the value of getting a great education. In fact, in 2017, he announced that he was opening his own school, I Promise.
Speaking to Cleveland.com of the school, James went so far as saying it was one of the accomplishments he was proudest of. James became emotional as he added that he was grateful to be in a position where he could provide a school to kids he so closely identified with. “I was those kids … I walked those streets and it was just like, ‘There’s no way I’m gonna be able to get out this situation,'” he recounted. Sure enough, despite being on the honor roll at his high school, James told ESPN back in 2002 of a period when his mom’s disorderly conduct prompted him to skip half a school year when he was in fourth grade.
Today, in addition to his NBA GOAT status, James is the vice principal of I Promise. Now, can someone pass us a tissue?
