While height is often seen as an advantage in basketball, being too tall can come with unexpected drawbacks—even in the National Basketball Association. From increased injury risks to mobility challenges, some of the tallest players in NBA history have struggled to keep up with the demands of the game. Some even had career-ending injuries that derailed any hopes of championships. But just how much of a disadvantage can extreme height be?
Since 2000, NBA teams have drafted 97 players at least 6’9” tall with lottery picks. On average, these players missed 18% of their potential games due to injury, while the 95 lottery picks standing 6’8” or shorter missed only around 13.5%. The trend shows that as height increases, so does the percentage of missed games, with players 7 ‘0 ” and taller missing nearly 24% of their games.
Looking at the past, Yao Ming, Manute Bol, and many others had their careers impacted by numerous injuries and speculation about their long-term health. These 7-footers were thought by the world to be dominant, but unfortunately, with the resources available back then, many NBA players 7’1” or taller ended up facing their inevitable fate.
This year, out of around 56 games, the top 12 tallest players in the NBA played in about 68% of the games. So far, Chet Holmgren of the Oklahoma City Thunder is 7’1”, and he has played only two seasons despite being drafted three years ago. He missed his rookie season due to a season-ending injury and, as of now, has played a total of 70% of the possible games in the last two years. Victor Wembanyama’s story is even more of an outlier than the definition of an outlier itself. Despite being the tallest player in the NBA, he was drafted as the number one pick and had a great rookie and pre-All-Star break performance, but as of now, he suffered an internal medical issue that sidelined him for the rest of the season.
Overall, I don’t think there is such a thing as being too tall, or at least not as impactful as it may seem, since in many sports, being this tall could lead to the same issues or worse, even in games where height is glorified, like basketball and football. We can prevent more serious complications by allocating our resources and maximizing the health and safety of players. Being too tall is the same as being too small—its issues could make or break someone’s career. Unfortunately, this is not something we can stop, but we can certainly decrease the probability of it happening. We could have better load management so that superstar tall players are not playing the entirety of the game and have to carry everyone on their backs, eat healthier, and overall introduce and refine training programs to battle this war.
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