What’s the Shortest NBA Player?

The average height of an NBA player is just over six and a half feet tall, but there have been a few players who have bucked that trend. Here’s a look at the shortest NBA players in history.

Introduction

In the NBA, height definitely has its advantages. The average height of an NBA player is just under 6’7”, which gives them a significant reach advantage over their opponents. This can be especially helpful on the defensive end, where players use their size to block shots and grab rebounds.

But being tall isn’t everything. There have been plenty of successful NBA players who are on the shorter side. In fact, some of the league’s biggest stars are undersized compared to their counterparts. Below is a list of the shortest players in NBA history, along with their career accomplishments.

Muggsy Bogues – 5’3”
Calvin Murphy – 5’9”
Spud Webb – 5’7”
Dwayne Wade – 6’4”

The shortest NBA players

Muggsy Bogues, the shortest player in NBA history, was just 5 feet 3 inches tall. Bogues didn’t let his lack of height hold him back, though. He had a successful 14-year career in the NBA. In this article, we’ll take a look at the 10 shortest players in NBA history.

Earl Boykins

At five feet five inches tall, Earl Boykins is the shortest player in NBA history. He was born on June 2, 1976, in Cleveland, Ohio. Boykins played college basketball at Eastern Michigan University from 1994 to 1998. He was not selected in the 1998 NBA Draft but played for several NBA teams throughout his career, including the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Clippers, Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Orlando Magic. Boykins also had a brief stint with the Chinese Basketball Association’s Guangdong Southern Tigers in 2011. He retired from professional basketball in 2013.

Mel Hirsch

Mel Hirsch was the shortest NBA player in 1952. He was just 5’3” tall. Hirsch played for the Philadelphia Warriors and averaged 2.4 points per game in his one season in the NBA.

Muggsy Bogues

Muggsy Bogues is the shortest player ever to play in the National Basketball Association. Bogues was born on January 9, 1965, in Baltimore, Maryland. Standing just 5’3″, Bogues was considered too small to play basketball at the professional level. He proved the doubters wrong, however, and went on to have a successful 14-year career in the NBA.

Bogues began his career with the Washington Bullets (now the Washington Wizards) in 1987. He played for the Bullets for 10 years before being traded to the Charlotte Hornets in 1997. Bogues played for the Hornets until 2001, when he finished his career with a brief stint with the Golden State Warriors. In total, Bogues appeared in 1,035 NBA games and averaged 7.7 points, 2.6 assists, and 1.5 steals per game.

Since his retirement from playing basketball, Bogues has been involved in a variety of business ventures. He has served as head coach of The Charlotte Sting of the Women’s National Basketball Association and as Director of Player Personnel for the Charlotte Bobcats (now the Charlotte Hornets). He currently works as a motivational speaker and an analyst on Hornets broadcasts.

The tallest NBA players

According to the NBA, the average height of a player is just over 6 feet 7 inches, with the tallest player being just over 7 feet tall. So who are the shortest players in the NBA? Let’s take a look.

Yao Ming

Yao Ming is a retired Chinese professional basketball player who played for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected to start for the Western Conference in the NBA All-StarGame eight times, and was named to the All-NBA Team five times. At a height of 2.29m (7ft 6 in), he was the tallest active player in the NBA, and is often referred to as “the Shaquille O’Neal of Asia”.

Manute Bol

At 7’7”, Manute Bol is the tallest player in NBA history. He was born in Sudan (then known as the Sudanese Republic) in 1962 and played college basketball at the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut. He was drafted by the Golden State Warriors in 1985 and played for several teams during his 10-year career, including the Washington Bullets/Wizards, Philadelphia 76ers, and Miami Heat. After retiring from the NBA, he returned to Sudan to help raise awareness about the ongoing civil war there. He died from kidney failure in 2010.

At just 5’3”, Muggsy Bogues is the shortest player in NBA history. He was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1965 and played college basketball at Wake Forest University. He was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets (now known as the Charlotte Bobcats) in 1987 and spent most of his 14-year career with that team. He also played for the Golden State Warriors, Toronto Raptors, and Washington Bullets/Wizards. After retiring from basketball, he became a coach and now serves as an assistant coach for the Milwaukee Bucks.

Shawn Bradley

Shawn Bradley is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Nets of the NBA. He was officially listed at 7’6″ (228 cm) and later estimated to be 7’5″ (226 cm). When Bradley blocked shots, which he did an average of 3.5 times per game while playing for the Sixers in 1997–98, he often made use of his vertical reach of 11 feet 5 inches (3.48 m).

Conclusion

It appears that the shortest player in the NBA is Isaiah Thomas of the Denver Nuggets, who is just 5’9”. While there have been shorter players in the past, such as Muggsy Bogues (5’3”), Earl Boykins (5’5”), and Spud Webb (5’7”), they all retired several years ago. In the current NBA landscape, it seems that Thomas is the shortest player.