Basketball is a sport that focuses on height, which greatly affects the success of the players. NBA players have an average height of 2m01, so this parameter is a prerequisite in selecting talent for the most elite tournament on the planet. For example, superstar Stephen Curry. With a height of 1m83 at the age of 18, Curry was ignored by most scouts because his body was shorter than the standard.
Family genetic factors affect everyone’s height. However, there have been players who have developed exceptionally well, despite the fact that their parents were only of average height. Even though their parents are just ordinary people, the following stars have become professional players with heights exceeding the NBA average.
1. Boban Marjanovic
The center forward playing for the Dallas Mavericks is known as a true giant in the NBA. Possessing a height of 2m24 with record-breaking big hands (30cm long, 27cm wide), Boban receives a lot of love for his cheerful and sociable personality in addition to his outstandingly tall appearance.
However, Boban Marjanovic’s parents are just people of normal height. Boban’s mother, Smilja Marjanović, is only 1m68 tall while her deceased father is 1m75 tall. Boban Marjanovic’s giant body comes from a disease that affects the pituitary gland, causing Boban’s height to constantly increase. At the age of 14, Boban was taller than most NBA players at 2m10.
2. Wilt Chamberlain
A great legend of world basketball and sports, Wilt Chamberlain has a superhuman physical ability that far exceeds that of normal people. In addition to the unbelievable parameters of arm span, jumping high or sprinting, Wilt Chamberlain is also known for his unique height of 2m16 in the 60s and 70s.
Wilt’s father, William Chamberlain, is only 1m75 tall. Meanwhile, Wilt’s mother, Olivia Ruth Johnson, is slightly taller at 1m77. The cause of Wilt Chamberlain’s sudden height may come from his grandfather, a farmer with a height of about 2m10. This is quite reasonable as Wilt’s younger brother also inherited his grandfather’s height with parameters of 1m95.
3. Michael Jordan
The player considered the greatest in the NBA was born and raised in a very ordinary family. Michael Jordan’s father is 1m75 tall and his mother is 1m68 tall. Because of this, height was not Jordan’s strong point in his high school years. With a height of 1m80, many scouts rejected Michael Jordan because they thought he was too short to become a professional player.
To show his determination, Michael Jordan threw himself into non-stop training. In just one year, Jordan increased his height by 10cm. The Bulls legend hit the 1m98 mark as a rookie for the Chicago team, and the rest is history.
4. Jeremy Lin
Jeremy Lin is one of the few East Asian players to become a phenomenon in the NBA. Born into an Asian family, it’s no surprise that Lin’s parents are both 1m68 tall. “Linsanity” admitted that he once blamed his father for being short in childhood and apologized to his father after becoming more mature.
At the age of 15, Jeremy Lin was only 1m60 tall until professional basketball training had an impact on Lin. After only 2 years, Jeremy Lin was 1m91 tall at the age of 17 and became the first Taiwanese player to play in the NBA a few years later.
