Wilkins was born in Paris, France while his father was stationed there as an airman in the U.S. Air Force. Wilkins\' family then moved to Dallas and Baltimore before settling in Washington, North Carolina, where he attended Washington High School. He was the back-to-back MVP for the team\'s consecutive Class 3-A State Championships (1978–1979). Wilkins was in the "Faces in the Crowd" section of Sports Illustrated while in high school for a performance in a game vs. a higher classification school in which he scored 48 points, had 27 rebounds, 9 dunks, and 8 blocks. Wilkins then starred in the McDonald\'s All-American Game, The Capital Classic, The Kentucky Derby Festival Classic, and The Dapper Dan Classic All-Star Games. He had 16 points and 12 rebounds in the McDonald\'s, 26 points in the Capital, and 22 points in the Derby Classic. He entered the University of Georgia in 1979 with an established reputation as an exciting player. Wilkins averaged 21.6 points a game over his career and was named SEC Men\'s Basketball Player of the Year in 1981. He left college after his junior year and was selected third overall (behind James Worthy and Terry Cummings) by the Utah Jazz in the 1982 NBA draft.\n', '

Cash flow problems within the Utah Jazz organization, along with Wilkins\'s reluctance to play with the Jazz, led to his trade to the Atlanta Hawks several months after the draft for John Drew, Freeman Williams and $1 million in cash. Despite Wilkins\'s reluctance to play in Utah, the trade is now considered among the most lopsided deals in NBA history, as Drew and Williams would play a combined four seasons for the Jazz.\n', '

With the exception of his rookie season and his last three NBA seasons, Wilkins never averaged fewer than 20 points per game and captured a scoring title in 1985–86 with an average of 30.3 points per game.\n', '

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