Mike Sharavjamts is a big deal in Mongolia. USC is expecting big things from him
His father was known as the “Mongolian Shark.” South Carolina senior transfer guard Mike Sharavjamts is known to many as “Mongolian Mike.”
“Yeah, my people call me that,” Sharavjamts said.
Sharavjamts’ Instagram handle is MongolianMike, and the USC social media team had some fun with him and his nickname. They posted a video of him throwing down a 360-degree dunk from practice titled, “His name is Mike, and he’s from Mongolia.”
Sharavjamts’s full name first name is “Enkhiin-Od Michael Sharavjamts” and his last name is pronounced “shar-rahv-jomps.” He’s a big deal in Mongolia and is known as the first Mongolian citizen to earn a Division I scholarship. There is a mural of Sharavjamts and a basketball court dedicated to him in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
Sharavjamts, who was actually born in the United States, lived in Mongolia for 10 years before returning to the U.S. at the age of 12 to to continue his pursuit of basketball. He started playing the game at an early age, following in the footsteps of his father Sharavjamts Tserenjankhar, a 7-footer who was the first Asian player to join the Harlem Globetrotters. Mike’s grandfather also was a member of the Mongolian national basketball team.
It is Mongolian custom for children to use their father’s first name as their last name. That’s why Mike’s last name is different from his dad.
According to a 2001 story in Sports Illustrated, Sharavjamts’ father (who was 27 years old at the time) was discovered by former LSU coach Dale Brown during a trip to Mongolia when he was there to attend the country’s first basketball clinic.
“He has such flair,” Brown said in the story. “I thought immediately that he was a Division I player.”
His father spent two years with the Globetrotters and now works with the Stars Basketball Club in Mongolia. Mike, who is 6-foot-9, used his father as a prop during a dunk contest at Mongolian National Basketball Association event in 2019.
“He stood out front, pulled off his shirt and underneath was my old (No. 55) Mongolian jersey. Then he came and jumped over me and dunked,” his father said during an interview with the Dayton Daily News in 2022.
Mike said his dunking ability and athleticism are a few of the things he hopes to improve on this season for the Gamecocks. He hopes to get double figures in dunks for USC.
Mike will wear No. 55 at South Carolina, which is his fourth and final stop on his college career. He has played 99 college games at Dayton (2022-23), San Francisco (2023-24) and Utah (2024-25). He declared for the NBA Draft in 2023 before returning to college.
Sharavjamts averaged 7.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 2024-25 for the Utes. He entered the transfer portal on April and committed to USC less than two weeks later.
“The playing style here and the coaching staff,” Sharavjamts said of why he picked USC. “I believe in Coach Paris and I think his style can fit me very well.”
Sharavjamts said he considers himself a combo guard, and he can play the point guard spot or shooting guard role. He grew up studying Kevin Durant’s and Magic Johnson’s games. Both are big guys who can handle the ball.
Sharavjamts is one of 11 newcomers and freshmen who USC coach Lamont Paris brought in to retool the roster from a team that went 12-20 last season — a year after making the NCAA Tournament. His size, ballhandling and versatility will give Paris a lot of options on how to use him.
“He can come off ball screens and make reads, make all the reads,” Paris said of Sharavjamts during a press conference in June. “… He will be in a lot of situations where he is making decisions. And the more decision makers you can have on the floor at any one particular time, the better it is for your offense.”
During the portion of a recent practice opened to the media, Sharavjamts played the point guard position. He’ll be handling the ball a lot as he teams with Meechie Johnson, who is back for his second stint with USC after playing last season with Ohio State.
Johnson compared Sharavjamts’ style and pace of play to former USC point guard Ta’Lon Cooper, who played with the Gamecocks during the 2023-24 season.
Paris raved about Sharavjamts’ vision and ability to create matchup problems with his size.
“Mike’s feel for the game stands out among guys who have a good feel for the game. He is a really, really skilled guy,” Paris said. “His decision making has been good. He has always had good assist numbers. He sees the game through a very reliable lens. That lens is similar to one that I see the game through, too, which is why he is even a better fit for us. He can do a lot of things.”
This story was originally published August 5, 2025 at 8:15 AM.
