The Bigger They Are, The Harder They Fall In The NBA

There is a saying that is synonymous with winning in the NBA: you can’t teach size.

Height has always been coveted deeply by general managers in the NBA. From the early days when Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell would face off against one another in the 1960s, through 1990s battle in the trenches between Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing; front office personnel have always viewed stature as the foundation for winning in pro basketball.

That vision is now askew for the NBA in the 21st Century.

With the game spreading all over the globe, kids now improving their basketball ability at a younger age, and players bulking up to look nearly superhero-like with intense workout regiments, professional basketball is now moving at a quicker pace with teams getting up and down the court constantly. The giants who were the most important ingredient in the recipe for creating an NBA champion are now seeing their miniature counterparts as the x-factor for success in the league.

The NBA is now becoming a point guard-driven league as they can control the tempo and their teams. The objective is no longer to decelerate, but to push the cadence of the game as smaller players try to beat bigger ones up the court. Key stars for many of the teams barely break the six-foot mark, such as Rajon Rondo (6’1), Derrick Rose (6’3), Chris Paul (6’0), and Deron Williams (6’3).

In order to stick with these smaller rode-runners, centers now must evolve to combine the qualities of a guard with the height of a center. Today, being a superior big man means having freakish agility and athletic ability in addition to superior length. Possessing these qualities is what makes players such as Dwight Howard, Amar’e Stoudamire, and Tyson Chandler remain atop the league at the center position.

Centers who don’t have the necessary flexibility, agility, mobility are finding it tough to keep up with the evolution of the league. Just being tall is no longer the crucial element in being a big man in the league, an issue that is becoming more apparent now given the status of many current centers in the NBA.

In 2002, the Houston Rockets had the first pick and the top player available was an overseas, seven-foot, six-inch colossal giant by the name of Yao Ming. Many pundits viewed him as a cornerstone pick that could carry a team on his back and lead them to numerous titles. He would be their choice and Houston believed they had taken their first step towards a new dynasty since after Olajuwon’s retirement.

The evolution of the NBA into a full-court league was just hitting full throttle at this time and the years that would follow would prove to be difficult for Yao. After his first two seasons, the big man from China would battle nagging leg injuries that would never allow him to complete a full campaign. With many teams in the league playing a more full court style and Yao spending more time in a suit than in a uniform since the middle of 2009, he recently decided to retire at the young age of 30.

Although he was extremely effective every minute he played on the court, Yao never reached the full potential others envisioned when the seven-foot Goliath joined the league in 2002.

This issue of being able to keep up with others on the court and staying healthy consistently has been a pattern for numerous players similar to Yao.

When Zydrunas Ilgauskas was the Cleveland Cavaliers selection in the 1996 draft, people didn’t view his potential at the same level as Yao. They did, however, see him as a player with the ability to be a prominent center in the NBA given his lengthy stature (seven-foot, three-inches). His first season illustrated the budding talent he had, but the style of the league took a toll on his body and he dealt with numerous injuries and surgeries for the three years after his freshman campaign.

Luckily, he was able to bounce back and remain on the court for the following five seasons, but aging and the constant running up and down the court over time would take a toll on his body and diminish his minutes significantly from 2008-2011.

At the opposite end of the country, another big man is finding his career ascending rapidly down the same trail as Yao’s.

Greg Oden left Ohio State with the moniker as the next big man to dominate the league. His massive height and ability to protect the paint where unheralded qualities that Portland felt were too good to pass up and used their number one selection on him in 2007.

Already dealing with a leg problem that manifested during his only college season, Oden entered the NBA as damaged goods due to the up-tempo style of basketball opponents would utilize as a counter against him. He would have micro fracture surgery on his right knee just prior to the start of the 2007-08 season and would miss that whole campaign.

He would return the next season, but would have another setback with a chipped knee cap late that year. The following season, he would hurt his left knee and have season-ending surgery once again. This past year proved to be no different, as he would never make it into a single game as he had micro fracture surgery on that same left knee.

Yao, Ilgauskas, and Oden all have similar qualities and body types, making it visible that centers that appear stiff will look even more rigid when they get on the court with other more athletic stars. The game can no longer cater to the old days; when nine to eleven other players with very little ability dumping the ball into an enormous target who can turn and dunk it on opponents who can’t even stand toe-to-toe with them. These days though, players like Dwyane Wade and Rose can easily reject any lay-up or throw down attempt by their bigger adversaries.

The style of the NBA will continue to evolve, as will the position of center, making it even more difficult for sluggish, inflexible seven-footers to continue to be a part of this progression. Being tall in the league is now like being a dollar in the world economy; it will just continue to lose its value.

Size may not be teachable, but now more than ever, it is becoming more anonymous with success in the NBA.