Everyone thinks the NBA is a land of giants. You see guys like Victor Wembanyama looking like a literal skyscraper out there, and you figure, "Yeah, I never had a chance." But honestly? That’s not the whole story. Some of the most electric, terrifying, and straight-up dominant players in history weren't even as tall as the average guy you see at the grocery store.
We’re talking about the short NBA players all time who basically looked at the physics of basketball and said, "Nah, I'm good." These weren't just novelty acts or mascots. They were killers on the court. If you think being 5'3" means you can't block Patrick Ewing, you clearly haven't heard of Muggsy Bogues.
Basketball is built on the idea that height is a cheat code. But these guys proved that being low to the ground has its own set of perks. You’re faster. You have a lower center of gravity. You can literally disappear from a 7-footer’s line of sight and steal the ball before they even realize they’ve started their dribble.
The Absolute Shortest: Muggsy Bogues (5'3")
You can't talk about short NBA players all time without starting with the king. Tyrone "Muggsy" Bogues.
He was 5 feet, 3 inches tall.
Think about that for a second. The average American male is 5'9". Muggsy was significantly shorter than the "normal" guy on the street, yet he played 14 seasons in a league where the average height hovers around 6'6". He wasn't just a benchwarmer, either. In the 1993-94 season, he averaged a double-double with 10.8 points and 10.1 assists per game.
How did he do it? Speed. Pure, unadulterated, "blink-and-you-miss-him" speed.
"Muggsy is a great testimony to the fact that speed kills." — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
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One of my favorite stats is that Muggsy had 39 career blocks. One of those was on Patrick Ewing, who is 7'0". Imagine being 21 inches shorter than someone and still swatting their shot. It’s legendary. He made the game adapt to him, rather than the other way around. He used his "weakness" as a weapon, getting so low to the floor that big men couldn't protect the ball from him.
The Pound-for-Pound Strongest: Earl Boykins (5'5")
If Muggsy was the speedster, Earl Boykins was the powerhouse.
Standing at 5'5" and weighing barely 135 pounds, Boykins looked like a kid out there. But the dude was built like a tank. There's a famous story—completely true, by the way—that he could bench press 315 pounds. That is more than double his body weight.
Boykins didn't get drafted. Nobody thought a 5'5" guard could survive the physicality of the NBA. He spent years on 10-day contracts, basically living out of a suitcase, just waiting for a real chance. When he finally got it with the Denver Nuggets, he became a scoring machine.
He once scored 32 points in a game against the Pistons in 2004. He’s the shortest player ever to drop 30+ in a game. He had this weird, high-arcing layup that was basically unblockable because he’d release it so quickly. He played 13 seasons. Honestly, his longevity is just as impressive as his strength.
Gravity? What Gravity? Spud Webb (5'6")
Now, Spud Webb is the guy everyone remembers because of 1986.
The Slam Dunk Contest.
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He was 5'6" (sometimes listed at 5'7", but let's be real, he was tiny). He went up against Dominique Wilkins, his own teammate and one of the most ferocious dunkers to ever live. Dominique was 6'8". Spud shouldn't have been able to touch the rim, let alone win the whole thing.
But he did. He had a 42-inch vertical.
He didn't just squeak out a win; he dominated. He was doing 360s and reverse dunks that left Michael Jordan and the rest of the league with their jaws on the floor. But Spud was more than a dunker. He played over 800 games in the NBA. He was a legitimate starting point guard who could run an offense and shoot the lights out.
Why We Don’t See Them Anymore (Or Do We?)
You might notice that the list of short NBA players all time is mostly guys from the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s. The league has changed.
Everything is about "length" now. Coaches want "positionless basketball," where every player is between 6'7" and 6'10" and can do everything. It’s harder for a guy under 6 feet to get a look today because teams are terrified of the defensive mismatch. If you’re 5'9", a team will just switch a 6'8" wing onto you and shoot right over your head.
But wait.
As of early 2026, we actually have a new face in the "short king" rotation. Yuki Kawamura.
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He’s 5'8". He recently signed with the Chicago Bulls after a stint with the Memphis Grizzlies. Watching him play is like a throwback to the Muggsy era. He’s incredibly fast, he has a high basketball IQ, and he’s proving that there is still a niche for the "small" guard who can disrupt a defense.
The Real List: Shortest to Ever Play
- Muggsy Bogues (5'3"): The GOAT of short players.
- Earl Boykins (5'5"): The strongest pound-for-pound.
- Mel Hirsch (5'6"): Played for the Boston Celtics way back in 1946.
- Spud Webb (5'6"): The man who proved small guys can fly.
- Greg Grant (5'7"): A journeyman who played for six different teams.
- Keith Jennings (5'7"): Had a brief but solid run with the Warriors.
- Red Klotz (5'7"): Mostly known for the Washington Generals, but he won a title with the Baltimore Bullets in 1948.
- Wataru Misaka (5'7"): A pioneer as the first non-Caucasian player in the league.
The Mental Game: E-E-A-T on the Hardwood
You can't just be fast if you're short. You have to be smarter than everyone else.
Players like Calvin Murphy (5'9"), who is in the Hall of Fame, had to be elite at everything. Murphy was a defensive pest and a legendary free-throw shooter (he once held the record for most consecutive made free throws).
If you're a "short" player by NBA standards—which usually means anyone under 6'1"—you're playing with a massive target on your back. You have to be "tenacious." That’s the word coaches always use. It basically means you have to be willing to dive for every loose ball and get elbowed in the face and keep going.
Actionable Takeaways for the "Short" Hooper
If you're reading this and you're the shortest guy at the local gym, don't sweat it. You're in good company. Here is how the legends of short NBA players all time actually made it work:
- Master the floater. You can’t always get to the rim for a layup. Learn to touch the ball high off the glass or float it over the big man’s reach.
- Conditioning is your best friend. You need to be able to run circles around the big guys until they're gasping for air.
- Low center of gravity. Use your height to get under the "shoulders" of the defender. If you're lower than them, you control the space.
- Ball handling has to be perfect. If you turn the ball over, you're a liability. If you're a wizard with the rock, you're an asset.
The NBA might be a league of giants, but the history of the game belongs to the guys who dared to walk among them. Whether it's Muggsy's steals or Spud's dunks, the little guys haven't just survived—they've thrived.
Next Steps for Your Game
- Analyze your defensive stance: Are you staying low enough to disrupt the ball-handler's rhythm?
- Work on your "change of pace" dribble: Speed is good, but the ability to stop and start instantly is what actually kills defenders.
- Study film of Isaiah Thomas (the 5'9" version) or Yuki Kawamura to see how they use screens to create space against much taller defenders.