There is a fairly common stereotype that basketball is a game exclusively for tall and stocky people, and if you are short, there is no place for you in this sport. Of course, such a statement is completely false. Exceptional height absolutely does not make a person a good player, just as the lack of height definitely does not leave a person without a chance for success.
To prove this, we will find examples from the strongest basketball league in the world, the NBA. Over the rather long history of the franchise, a lot of short players came to light, drawing attention to themselves and making everyone forget about numbers in front of the word “centimeters”.
Damon Stoudamire, 178 cm
The player nicknamed “Mighty Mouse” debuted in the league in the 1995/96 season. His first season was fantastic. Stoudemire averaged 19 points and 9 assists per game. He was almost the only basketball star in Toronto at the time. His performance was immediately noticed. Damon received the Rookie of the Year award. Just imagine how good he was: Kevin Garnett, Arvydas Sabonis and Rasheed Wallace debuted at the same time. However, a basketball player with a height of 178 centimeters won the prize.
Stoudemire still holds this kind of record – he is the shortest athlete who was recognized as the rookie of the year. Considering the trend of choosing bigmen, this achievement can last for a very long time.
As a result, Stoudemire spent 15 seasons in the NBA, participated in 878 games of the regular season and earned more than 11 thousand points.
Spud Webb, 168 cm
It is impressive when a short player is skillful on the basketball court, but it is even more stunning when he can dunk really well. Slam dunks from “kids” are a separate kind of art. In 1986, Spud Webb won the NBA All-Star Weekend contest due to his dunking abilities.
Interestingly, Webb’s opponent was his teammate Dominique Wilkins. The legendary player later recalled that during all the training he did not see a single dunk from Spud and simply could not have thought that he could play such a trick.
Webb has a pretty good basketball career – 13 seasons, 814 games, 8072 points.
Muggsy Bogues, 160 cm
NA man with the height of 160 cm is considered to be short not only in the professional basketball setting but in general, too. Nevertheless, it did not stop Muggsy Bogues from taking part in 15 NBA seasons and playing 889 games.
Muggsy immediately understood his uniqueness in this “League of Giants” and quickly turned a disadvantage (as it is commonly believed) into an advantage. Due to his shortness, he regularly took the ball away on the dribble from taller players who simply couldn’t keep up with Boggs’ movements. He was even aptly named as a “mugger”. Muggsy also used his advantage in speed and technique to bring the ball into the other half of the court and create attacks from his team.
Isaiah Thomas, 175 cm
The most recent example of the feats of “kids” in the NBA is from Isaiah Thomas. In the 2011 draft, Thomas was picked last, and the team that got him (“Sacramento”) did not really plan to use Isaiah. Still, Thomas grabbed his chance. In the first season, he got into the second team of the Rookies. After this he changed few clubs and became extremely successful in 2016.
Thomas became the first player in history selected with the last pick to go to the All-Star Game. On top of that, he was chosen twice in a row. Isaiah became also the part of the second team of the season.
Two of his statistical indicators are worth special attention. Thomas became the shortest player in NBA history to score more than 50 points in a single game. He is also the shortest player to record a triple-double. Well, you may not surprise some people with points and assists, but when you see 10+ rebounds from a player who is 175 centimeters tall, it is a rarity.
Nate Robinson, 172 cm
Only one person in NBA history has managed to win the slam dunk contest three times. This person is neither Michael Jordan, nor Dominique Wilkins, nor Zach LaVine. It is Nate Robinson, 172 cm tall. Moreover, people who know Robinson in real life claim that the figure of 172 cm is significantly inflated, and he is actually even shorter. This is also confirmed by individual angles of Nate compared to other basketball players (for example, the same Spud Webb).
Nate spent 14 seasons in the league and was in full swing. But still, his main achievement was dunking. Robinson took this competition to such a high level that even today most contestants are judged on his benchmark performances.
It is interesting that it was the ability to score from above that opened Nate’s path to basketball. Because of his short stature, most coaches refused to seriously consider Robinson until he showed his athleticism by dunking.
It is important that Nate constantly developed and significantly improved his shooting from distance over time, so as not to be a one-sided player who is easy to read.
