What?!?!?!

[EBondo 233]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2071580

7'8" basketball player!?!? . These are the kind of things that really make me feel like a midget....how long do you guys think it'll be until they make the nets taller?

[Chadd 916]

Gotta love a sport where beaing a freak of nature means you have a job.

[mik3 1]

This guy makes shawn bradley look like a bodybuilder though. Look what happened to Yao when he came into the league, small forwards back him down.

[EBondo 233]

Gotta love a sport where beaing a freak of nature means you have a job.

Haha...just wish I could be taller...I hate being stuck here at 5'3"

[hocckey77 0]

Since when is China known for making extremly tall people?

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

Since when is China known for making extremly tall people?

lol, hormones...

[Fonya 0]

This reminds of that guy in the longest yard.....WTF Mate..

[asdfa 0]

imagine this sun mingming blocking a shot from earl boykins (who's 5'5) :P he wouldn't even have to put his arms up or jump, he could block it with his forehead!

EDIT : missed the l in earl

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

imagine this sun mingming blocking a shot from earl boykins (who's 5'5) :P he wouldn't even have to put his arms up or jump, he could block it with his forehead!

EDIT : missed the l in earl

haha, lol...

[EBondo 233]

and like they said, he probably wouldnt even have to jump to dunk

[Bruin88 0]

and like they said, he probably wouldnt even have to jump to dunk

then would it even be dunking?

[Neo5370 132]

Gotta love a sport where beaing a freak of nature means you have a job.

c'mon.........you do have to be athletic to make it in the NBA.

If that weren't the case then every player would be over 7ft tall.

[Chadd 916]

Gotta love a sport where beaing a freak of nature means you have a job.

c'mon.........you do have to be athletic to make it in the NBA.

If that weren't the case then every player would be over 7ft tall.

Shawn Bradley and Manute Bol both made millions of dollars simply because they were tall. Lately they've been focusing too much on "athletic" players. It usually means they're fast or can jump out of the gym but can't hit a jumper to save their life. If Larry Bird was coming out of college now, he would probably not get drafted and he's one of the top 20 players in NBA history.

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

Gotta love a sport where beaing a freak of nature means you have a job.

c'mon.........you do have to be athletic to make it in the NBA.

If that weren't the case then every player would be over 7ft tall.

Shawn Bradley and Manute Bol both made millions of dollars simply because they were tall. Lately they've been focusing too much on "athletic" players. It usually means they're fast or can jump out of the gym but can't hit a jumper to save their life. If Larry Bird was coming out of college now, he would probably not get drafted and he's one of the top 20 players in NBA history.

I'm don't know a lot on basket but if you want to be a center, if you're 7 feet 10 and can run normally, you will make the NBA

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

Gotta love a sport where beaing a freak of nature means you have a job.

c'mon.........you do have to be athletic to make it in the NBA.

If that weren't the case then every player would be over 7ft tall.

Shawn Bradley and Manute Bol both made millions of dollars simply because they were tall. Lately they've been focusing too much on "athletic" players. It usually means they're fast or can jump out of the gym but can't hit a jumper to save their life. If Larry Bird was coming out of college now, he would probably not get drafted and he's one of the top 20 players in NBA history.

Sometimes it's also the case for hockey. Look at Peter Worrell. They brought him to the major junior of quebec and he had not touch a stick, or skates of his life, just to fight.

[hocckey77 0]

Gotta love a sport where beaing a freak of nature means you have a job.

c'mon.........you do have to be athletic to make it in the NBA.

If that weren't the case then every player would be over 7ft tall.

Shawn Bradley and Manute Bol both made millions of dollars simply because they were tall. Lately they've been focusing too much on "athletic" players. It usually means they're fast or can jump out of the gym but can't hit a jumper to save their life. If Larry Bird was coming out of college now, he would probably not get drafted and he's one of the top 20 players in NBA history.

Sometimes it's also the case for hockey. Look at Peter Worrell. They brought him to the major junior of quebec and he had not touch a stick, or skates of his life, just to fight.

He really never skated before then? How'd they know he could fight?

[Eazy_b97 1]

Sometimes it's also the case for hockey. Look at Peter Worrell. They brought him to the major junior of quebec and he had not touch a stick, or skates of his life, just to fight.

My understanding was he had played before, but couldn't skate backwards (neither can Anderchuk and he did alright for himself). I know there are a few of these cases in the NHL, the main guy who actually made a good name for himself that I can think of, on size alone, is Chara.

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

Sometimes it's also the case for hockey. Look at Peter Worrell. They brought him to the major junior of quebec and he had not touch a stick, or skates of his life, just to fight.

My understanding was he had played before, but couldn't skate backwards (neither can Anderchuk and he did alright for himself). I know there are a few of these cases in the NHL, the main guy who actually made a good name for himself that I can think of, on size alone, is Chara.

You have to put Worrell too in that list, IMO...

[asdfa 0]

Sometimes it's also the case for hockey. Look at Peter Worrell. They brought him to the major junior of quebec and he had not touch a stick, or skates of his life, just to fight.

My understanding was he had played before, but couldn't skate backwards (neither can Anderchuk and he did alright for himself). I know there are a few of these cases in the NHL, the main guy who actually made a good name for himself that I can think of, on size alone, is Chara.

actually, in the last playoffs, chara was surprising athletic and was a key component for the ottawa def. on acount of how he position himself, moved the puck and carried the play out of the zone... or so i remember. jeez, the NHL is such a distant memory :(

[Cavs019 710]

Chara has a TON of talent. To say he's in the league on size alone is utter ignorance. Many thought he would win the Norris last year.

[sherwood21 0]

...and he is supposed to be one of the hardest training players in the entire league. He's for sure not whoring his size advantage.

[Cavs019 710]

Yup, I believe he trains with his father who is/was a professional wrestler so his endurance is probably world-class.

[kosydar 0]

Yup, I believe he trains with his father who is/was a professional wrestler so his endurance is probably world-class.

He does. I remember reading an article in ESPN a few years ago where he talked about his training as a teenager. When he was 13 or 14 his father made him move logs across his property, and whenever he would go underneath a tree branch, he had to do a pull up. He did this for hours on end. I think he cycles a lot now, too.

[Chadd 916]

Chara has a TON of talent. To say he's in the league on size alone is utter ignorance. Many thought he would win the Norris last year.

He deserved it but it was Niedermayer's turn according to most writers.

[Project824 0]

Gotta love a sport where beaing a freak of nature means you have a job.

c'mon.........you do have to be athletic to make it in the NBA.

If that weren't the case then every player would be over 7ft tall.

Shawn Bradley and Manute Bol both made millions of dollars simply because they were tall. Lately they've been focusing too much on "athletic" players. It usually means they're fast or can jump out of the gym but can't hit a jumper to save their life. If Larry Bird was coming out of college now, he would probably not get drafted and he's one of the top 20 players in NBA history.

You can teach a jump shot. You can't teach athleticism or ability. There are plenty of old men that can have 90% shooting percentage playing in their local YMCA league, a product of countless hours practicing. But would never even have half the speed, size or strength to get even one of those shots off against NBA or even decent college competition. Athletic ability is a commodity in basketball, where you are on display on a much smaller playing surface and there is little room to hide. Most people don't realize just how fast they are moving up and down the court during games, just like most people watch a hockey game on tv and think they aren't that far off.

Shawn Bradley and Manute Bol (especially) are bad examples of teams trying desperately to find raw size and athleticism to compete with other teams in an era when centers were the hottest commodity in the NBA. For the two that you named, Ewing, Olajuwon, Robinson, Mutumbo, etc. could all play the game. They all had great fundamentals in the post but were only great because of their natural gifts. I also think that people shortchange Larry Bird assuming he wasn't athletic. In addition to being one of the greatest shooters in history and amazing footwork and work ethic to go along, you can't accomplish what he did without physical gifts. Don't forget that he was also 6'9".

Hockey is/will be no different. When and if the most athletic kids are able to or give hockey a shot instead of being drawn towards sports like football and basketball that place athleticism at the highest premium, then there will be an even higher level of physicality and speed brought into the game. Eric Lindros is a big hockey player, but he's an average sized linebacker, and I doubt he can run a 40 in 4.5 seconds.