If you’re looking for the Shortest NBA Player of All Time, then you are at the right place. In this article, we will discuss the Top 10 Shortest NBA Players of All Time.

The NBA is a league full of people, but there are also some players who are undersized. They stand out among the basketball giants with their own efforts and talents. When playing in the NBA, height is a very important factor. This is an indisputable fact. But in their own way, they proved that height is not the decisive factor in everything. What is more important than height is the power of heart and dreams.

Today, we will take a look at the 10 shortest NBA players of all time. Their stories are touching and admirable.

Top 10 Shortest NBA Players of All Time

When talking about athletes in the NBA, the first thing that comes to mind is that they are tall, strong, and powerful. But there are also some players who are not very tall. The advantage of small players is their lightning speed and super flexibility. They have made their own amazing historical achievements! Today, we will give you an inventory of the 10 shortest NBA Players ever.

10. Nate Robinson (5’9”)

Nate Robinson was Born in Seattle, USA in 1984, he plays the role of point guard. He was selected by the New York Knicks with the 21st overall pick in the first round of the 2005 NBA draft. His height is 1.75 meters.

He has played for many teams in his career and has played for the Knicks and Celtics. , Thunder, Warriors, Bulls, and Nuggets, winning the NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest three times. In 2017, the Venezuelan league team signed Nate Robinson. And led the team to win the Venezuelan League Championship and won FMVP.

9. Willie Somerset (5’8”)

Willie Somerset, born on March 17, 1942, in Sharon, Pennsylvania, USA, is a former American professional basketball player and point guard. His height is 5 feet 8 inches/1.73 meters.

Willie Somerset was selected by the Baltimore Bullets (now the Washington Wizards) in the seventh round of the 1965 NBA Draft with the 56th pick. He played for seven teams in his career and was selected to the ABA All-Star team in 1969. In 1973, 31-year-old Willie Somerset announced his retirement.

8. Charlie Criss (5’8”)

From 1977 to 1985, Charlie Criss was one of the Shortest NBA Players of All Time. As a point guard with a height of only 1.73 meters, in an era where the Giants were absolutely dominant and the three-point shot was still in its infancy, Charlie Criss survived in the league for eight seasons, with a career average of 100,000 per game. He scored 8.5 points and 3.2 assists, which shows his strength and hard work.

In his career, Charlie Criss scored in double figures in three seasons. His best year was his rookie season, when he averaged 11 points and 4 assists in 77 games. Since retiring, Criss has served as the Atlanta Hawks’ home announcer, minor league basketball coach, and more.

7. Keith Jennings (5’7”)

Keith Jennings participated in the 1991 NBA draft. As an older rookie who is only 1.70 meters tall, Jennings was not favored by any team at the time even though he had proven his strength in college. Fortunately, Jennings finally began his NBA career as a free agent. He spent three seasons in the NBA, playing for the Golden State Warriors (1992–95). In 164 games, Keith Jennings averaged 6.6 points and 3.7 assists in 18.0 minutes per game. After leaving the NBA in 1995, Keith Jennings continued to play professionally in Europe until his retirement.

From 1987 to 1991, Keith Jennings attended East Tennessee State University. In college, Jennings was selected to the All-American Second Team and won the Francis Pomeroy Naismith Award from the Hall of Fame in 1991. The award, which symbolizes the best student player under six feet tall, was first established in 1969 and is voted on by the National Coaches Basketball Association.

6. Greg Grant (5’7”)

Unlike many tall players, Greg, who is only 1.70 meters tall, can make up for his lack of height with his physical strength and skills. Jim Linham, his coach with the 76ers, once said of Greg: “He was like a spark plug, he could come off the bench, get the crowd involved, and change the tempo of the game.”

Greg was drafted by the Phoenix Suns in 1989. He played for 6 teams during his 6-year NBA career, of which the 3 years or so with the 76ers were particularly important to him. Greg said Coach Lynam gave him the opportunity he always wanted, which greatly boosted his self-confidence. 

He averaged 2.8 points, 2.7 assists and 0.9 rebounds per game in his NBA career. After retiring, he opened a sports school in his hometown of New Jersey in 2009 and published an autobiography to introduce how he worked hard in the NBA with a 170 cm tall figure.

5. Misaka Wataru (5’7”)

Misaka Wataru is a point guard. His height is only 1.70 meters. In college, he led the University of Utah to win the 1944 NCAA and 1947 NIT championships. He was selected by the New York Knicks in the 1947 BAA draft. From 1947 to the 1948 season, he only played three games with the Knicks and scored seven points before being waived by the team. But this is not the point. The point is that he became the first person to break through color discrimination in the history of modern American basketball.

Three years after he played for the Knicks, the first black player appeared in the NBA; he was also the first Asian-American NBA player, Chinese star Wang Zhizhi It was more than half a century after him that he landed in the NBA. His appearance greatly promoted the development of modern basketball!

4. Mel Hirsch (5’6”)

Although not much is known about the point guard named Mel Hirsch, it is certain that he is the fourth-shortest player in NBA history. His height is 1.68 meters. Hirsch was born in New York in 1921. When his Brooklyn University basketball team lost to Manhattan University in 1941, the New York Times wrote: “If Brooklyn had two or three more Miles Hess, It would have been a completely different outcome. Hess was everywhere and could steal rebounds and intercept passes.”

In 1946, Hess joined the NBA, then called the BAA, as a member of the Celtics. He scored a total of 19 points for the team in 13 NBA games.

3. Spud Webb (5’6”)

Spud Webb was an admirable player who used his 5-foot-6-inch frame to overcome all challenges and play in the NBA from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. He was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the 87th overall pick in the 1985 draft, but he exceeded all expectations and played 12 seasons in the NBA.

During his career, Webb averaged 9.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 1.1 steals per game. He also created a career-high 16.0 points, 2.9 rebounds, 7.1 assists, and 1.6 steals for the Sacramento Kings in the 1991-92 season.

However, Webb’s greatest achievement was winning the 1986 Slam Dunk Contest. We have to remember that in that game, Webb defeated Dominique Wilkins, one of the best dunkers in NBA history. With such a feat, Webb became one of the most impressive shortest players in NBA history.

2. Earl Boykins (5’5”)

In today’s NBA, it is very common for tall stars to score 30+ points every night, but it is very difficult for players who are less than 1.7 meters tall. So when Earl Boykins exploded for 36 points against the Sacramento Kings in 2007, he surprised everyone.

In that game, Boykins and his Bucks faced the Sacramento Kings. It was a seemingly unremarkable game, but Boykins showed his amazing performance in this game. In terms of scoring ability, in 40 minutes, he made 12 of 18 shots, including 6 of 11 three-pointers and 6 of 6 free throws. He scored 36 points and had 5 assists, helping the Bucks to a score of 114-107. won the game.

This is an incredible performance because Boykins is only 1.65 meters tall. He is the 2nd shortest NBA Players of All Time. His opponents on the court are much taller than him. He has very little space under the basket and his outside vision is also very good. He was limited and under great pressure on the defensive end, but he used his skills and courage to overcome all difficulties and show his own style.

Before Thomas shocked the league with his scoring prowess, Boykins was already doing it, scoring over 20 points in each of 10 games during the 2006-07 season. Although it was only a short period of time, Boykins’ offensive performance was a beautiful sight, especially when almost all NBA players were much taller than him.

1. Muggsy Bogues (5’3”)

The shortest NBA player ever in history is Maxi Bogues, who is only 5 feet 3 inches tall. Over his 14-year career, the point guard averaged 7.7 points, 2.6 rebounds, 7.6 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

Bogues was known for his courage and perseverance, never backing down from tough opponents like Michael Jordan. With that kind of dedication, Bogues always feels like he’s a cut above him because he’s always doing his best on the court.

Bogues’ most memorable time was with the Charlotte Hornets, where he spent nine full seasons until early in the 1997-98 season when he was traded to the Golden State Warriors, ending his tenure with the Golden State Warriors. The Hornets’ tenth season. From the 1992-93 season to the 1994-95 season, he averaged 10.6 points, 9.2 assists, and 1.7 steals per game, close to a double-double.

Boggs is also an excellent coach. He served as the head coach of the Charlotte Bobcats from 2005 to 2007. During his coaching career, he led the Bobcats to make some progress, especially in the 2006-07 season, when he led the team to create the best record at the time, winning 33 games.

Bogues is a basketball legend. He used his height to challenge the limits of the NBA and won the respect and love of countless fans.

Conclusion

These were the Top 10 Shortest NBA Players of All Time. Whether it is players or ordinary people, we must know how to overcome our own shortcomings and develop our own strengths. With hard work, we can still carve out a world of our own. Success never belongs to a small number of people.

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