Bogues was born in Baltimore, Maryland and played at Dunbar High School in his native Baltimore, where he was a teammate of future NBA players David Wingate (graduating class ahead of him), Reggie Williams and Reggie Lewis (both in his graduating class). The 1981–82 Dunbar Poets finished the season at 29–0 during Bogues' junior season and finished 31–0 during his senior season, and were ranked first in the nation by USA Today. He went on to play four years at Wake Forest University, averaging 11.3 points, 8.4 assists and 3.1 steals per game in his junior year. He followed with a senior campaign in which he averaged 14.8 points, 9.5 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 3.9 steals per game. He played for the US national team in the 1986 FIBA World Championship, and won the gold medal.