List of shortest players in National Basketball Association history
This is a complete listing of the shortest players in National Basketball Association history at a listed height of 5 feet 9 inches (175 cm) or shorter. Only 25 players in NBA history have been at or below this height.[1] The shortest NBA player to be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is Calvin Murphy at 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m). All of the players listed here have played or play the position of point guard. When 5-foot-9-inch (175 cm) Isaiah Thomas tipped off against 5-foot-9-inch (175 cm) Tyler Ulis, it was speculated to be the shortest combined jump ball ever.[2]
The shortest player ever in the old American Basketball Association (1967–76) was Penny Ann Early, a 5-foot-3-inch (160 cm) jockey who took part in one play in one game for the Kentucky Colonels as a publicity stunt in 1969. (The shortest real ABA players were Jerry Dover and Monte Towe, both 5 feet 7 inches or 170 centimetres.)
Table
| ^ | Active NBA player | ||||||
| * | Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame | ||||||
| GP | Games played | Pts | Points | PPG | Points per game | ||
| FG% | Field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage | Ast | Assists | ||
| APG | Assists per game | Stl | Steals | SPG | Steals per game | ||
| Height | Weight | Player | Nationality | Teams | GP | Pts | PPG | FG% | FT% | Ast | APG | Stl[lower-alpha 1] | SPG[lower-alpha 1] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 3 in (1.60 m) | 136 lb (62 kg) | Muggsy Bogues[3] |  USA |
Washington Bullets (1987–1988) Charlotte Hornets (1988–1997) Golden State Warriors (1997–1999) Toronto Raptors (1999–2001) |
889 | 6,858 | 7.7 | .458 | .827 | 6,726 | 7.6 | 1,369 | 1.54 | Played alongside the second tallest player in NBA history, Manute Bol, during the 1987–88 season for the Washington Bullets; their difference in height was 28 inches (71 cm).
Appeared in the film Space Jam,[4] which was filmed in 1995.[5] |
| 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) | 135 lb (61 kg) | Earl Boykins[6] | USA |
New Jersey Nets (1999) Cleveland Cavaliers (1999, 2000) Orlando Magic (1999) Los Angeles Clippers (2001–2002) Golden State Warriors (2002–03) Denver Nuggets (2003–2007) Milwaukee Bucks (2007, 2011) Charlotte Bobcats (2008) Washington Wizards (2009–10) Houston Rockets (2012) |
652 | 5,791 | 8.9 | .417 | .876 | 2,092 | 3.2 | 390 | 0.60 | |
| 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | Mel Hirsch[7] | USA |
Boston Celtics (1946–1947) | 13 | 19 | 1.5 | .200 | .500 | 10 | 0.8 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | 140 lb (64 kg) | Greg Grant[8] | USA |
Phoenix Suns (1989–1990) New York Knicks (1990–1991) Charlotte Hornets (1991–1992) Philadelphia 76ers (1991–1992, 1992–1993, 1995–1996) Washington Bullets (1995–1996) Denver Nuggets (1994–1995, 1995–1996) |
274 | 767 | 2.8 | .383 | .710 | 751 | 2.7 | 161 | 0.59 | |
| 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Keith Jennings[9] | USA |
Golden State Warriors (1992–1995) | 164 | 1,090 | 6.6 | .436 | .852 | 614 | 3.7 | 164 | 1.00 | |
| 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | 150 lb (68 kg) | Red Klotz[10] | USA |
Baltimore Bullets (1947–1948) | 11 | 15 | 1.4 | .226 | .333 | 7 | 0.6 | — | — | Shortest player to ever win an NBA championship. Later served as longtime head coach of the Washington Generals. |
| 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | 150 lb (68 kg) | Wataru Misaka[11] | USA |
New York Knicks (1947–1948) | 3 | 7 | 2.3 | .333 | 0 | 0.0 | — | — | — | First Non-Caucasian player and first Asian player in the NBA. |
| 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | 150 lb (68 kg) | Monte Towe[12] | USA |
Denver Nuggets (1976–1977) | 51 | 130 | 2.5 | .406 | .720 | 87 | 1.7 | 16 | 0.31 | The shortest player in the original ABA. |
| 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | 133 lb (60 kg) | Spud Webb[13] | USA |
Atlanta Hawks (1985–1991, 1995–1996) Sacramento Kings (1991–1995) Minnesota Timberwolves (1996) Orlando Magic (1998) |
814 | 8,072 | 9.9 | .452 | .848 | 4,342 | 5.3 | 922 | 1.13 | Won the NBA Slam Dunk Contest in 1986; shortest player to participate in the Slam Dunk Contest. |
| 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | Charlie Criss[14] | USA |
Atlanta Hawks (1977–1981, 1983–1984, 1984–1985) San Diego Clippers (1981–1982) Milwaukee Bucks (1982–1984) |
418 | 3,534 | 8.5 | .432 | .831 | 1,335 | 3.2 | 366 | 0.88 | |
| 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Dino Martin[15] | USA |
Providence Steamrollers (1946–1948) | 92 | 834 | 9.1 | .294 | .638 | 73 | 0.8 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Willie Somerset[16] | USA |
Baltimore Bullets (1965–1966) | 8 | 45 | 5.6 | .419 | .818 | 9 | 1.1 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Howie Carl[17] | USA |
Chicago Packers (1961–1962) | 31 | 170 | 5.5 | .333 | .706 | 57 | 1.8 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 158 lb (72 kg) | Charlie Hoefer[18] |  GER |
Toronto Huskies (1946–1947) Boston Celtics (1947–1948) |
65 | 361 | 5.6 | .250 | .646 | 36 | 0.6 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 150 lb (68 kg) | Lionel Malamed[19] | USA |
Indianapolis Jets (1948) Rochester Royals (1948–1949) |
44 | 258 | 5.9 | .334 | .831 | 61 | 1.4 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Ed Melvin[20] | USA |
Pittsburgh Ironmen (1946–1947) | 57 | 281 | 4.9 | .263 | .654 | 37 | 0.6 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | Calvin Murphy*[21] | USA |
San Diego/Houston Rockets (1970–1983) | 1,002 | 17,949 | 17.9 | .482 | .892 | 4,402 | 4.4 | 1,165 | 1.53 | Shortest NBA player to be inducted to the Hall of Fame, as well as appear in at least one All-Star Game.[lower-alpha 2] |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 145 lb (66 kg) | Angelo Musi[23] | USA |
Philadelphia Warriors (1946–1949) | 161 | 1,359 | 8.4 | .290 | .771 | 117 | 0.7 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Ralph O'Brien | USA |
Indianapolis Olympians (1951–1952) Baltimore Bullets |
119 | 848 | 7.1 | .360 | .830 | 180 | 1.5 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Nate Robinson[24] | USA |
New York Knicks (2005–2010) Boston Celtics (2009–2011) Oklahoma City Thunder (2011) Golden State Warriors (2011–12) Chicago Bulls (2012–2013) Denver Nuggets (2013–2015) Los Angeles Clippers (2015) New Orleans Pelicans (2015) |
574 | 6,569 | 11.4 | .427 | .800 | 1,725 | 3.0 | 522 | 0.91 | The only three-time winner of the NBA Slam Dunk Contest, winning in 2006, 2009 and 2010. |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 155 lb (70 kg) | Gene Rock[25] | USA |
Chicago Stags (1947–1948) | 11 | 10 | 0.9 | .222 | .500 | 0 | 0.0 | — | — | |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | Yuta Tabuse[26] |  JPN |
Phoenix Suns (2004–2005) | 4 | 7 | 1.8 | .167 | 1.000 | 3 | 0.8 | 0 | 0.00 | The first Japanese born player to play in the NBA. |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | Isaiah Thomas^[27] | USA |
Sacramento Kings (2011–2014) Phoenix Suns (2014–2015) Boston Celtics (2015–2017) Cleveland Cavaliers (2017–2018) Los Angeles Lakers (2018) Denver Nuggets (2018–2019) |
485 | 9,020 | 18.6 | .437 | .874 | 2,453 | 5.1 | 451 | 0.9 | Shortest player to be included in an All-NBA Team. Shortest player to play in an NBA All-Star game (tied with Calvin Murphy). Shortest player to play in multiple All-Star games. Shortest player to record a triple-double in a game. |
| 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 176 lb (80 kg) | Kay Felder[28] | USA |
Cleveland Cavaliers (2016–2017) Chicago Bulls (2017) Detroit Pistons (2018) |
58 | 223 | 3.8 | .364 | .754 | 78 | 1.3 | 21 | 0.4 |
Notes
- The National Basketball Association did not record steal statistics until the 1973–74 season.
- The shortest player in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of fame is pre-NBA player Barney Sedran, at 5 feet 4 inches (163 cm).[22]
See also
References
- "Player Season Finder: For combined seasons; played in the NBA/BAA; in the regular season; from 1946–47 to 2010–11; 5–9 or shorter; sorted by descending height". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved January 28, 2011.
- "Isaiah Thomas vs. Tyler Ulis may have been the shortest jump ball in NBA history". SBNation.com. Retrieved 2018-07-27.
- "Muggsy Bogues Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- Space Jam, retrieved 2020-02-18
- Space Jam (1996) - IMDb, retrieved 2020-02-18
- "Earl Boykins Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
- "Mel Hirsch Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Greg Grant Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Keith Jennings Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Louis Herman (Herm, Red) Klotz Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Wataru (Wat) Misaka Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Monte Corwin Towe Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Spud Webb Smallest Player to ever Win NBA Slam Dunk Contest". thepostgame.com. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
- "Charlie Criss Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Donald E. (Dino) Martin Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Willard F. (Willie) Somerset Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Howard Hershey (Howie) Carl Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Adolph Charles (Dutch, Dutch, Charlie) Hoefer Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Lionel Malamed Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Edward H. (Ed) Melvin Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Calvin Murphy Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- Barney Sedran's page at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame retrieved September 19, 2016
- "Angelo Jr. Musi Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Nate Robinson Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Eugene (Gene) Rock Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Yuta Tabuse Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
- "Isaiah Thomas Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
- "Kay Felder Info Page". NBA. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
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