How Muggsy Bogues Lit up the NBA

How Muggsy Bogues Lit up the NBA

Muggsy Bogues might well be the shortest player ever in NBA history, but that didn’t affect his career in any way – in fact, many feel it was his 5’3 height which helped him to carve out such a successful basketball career. There have been other NBA players on the shorter side; however, the 2nd shortest after Bogues was 5’7; so Muggsy was shorter than him by quite a significant amount – especially in a game where often height is considered a big advantage. However, during the highlight of his career anyone interested in NBA betting would have wanted to know what Muggsy was doing, because his performance was always one to watch!

The Early Years

Much like many other professional basketball players, Tyrone ‘Muggsy’ Bogues played the game from a young age. In fact, it was during his childhood in Baltimore that he earned the nickname Muggsy for being so tough during the pick-up basketball gamest that often took place on outdoor courts throughout the city.

Part of the fact that Bogues was able to progress to playing basketball professionally is down to his high school team, which actually developed four NBA players during the time Bogues played for them. The Dunbar Poets performed spectacularly during the 1981-1982 leagues and it really showed.

His Professional Basketball Career

When you consider that Bogues played for the NBA for 13 years, it is easy to see that he is likely to have had a number of career highlights during that time. There are lots of things that he is known for as a player, but his team loyalty is definitely something that needs to be mentioned. His 13 years playing for the NBA included 10 at the Charlotte Hornets, showing incredible loyalty to his team. During his time with the Charlotte Hornets, he earned himself a number of records including career assists and steals. Throughout his time playing in the NBA he became known for more than just being a short basketball player – his speed, quickness and passing ability are many basketball players envy. It is thought that he had a 44” vertical leap ability, which meant that despite his shorter higher he could pretty much dunk a basketball on a 10ft hoop; a decent skill for any player to be able to boast.

Career Highlights

There is no need for career highlights that could be listed when you look back at Bogues’s professional basketball career – however, there has to be a special mention for the fact he blocked 39 shots during the 1993-1994 season. Not only that but one of those shots was an attempt by Patrick Ewing – a 7’0” centre that plenty of players would have struggled to block, let alone someone nearly 2ft shorter. During this same season, he managed to average some pretty decent game statistics – including 10.7 assists and 10.8 points per game, pretty impressive. There is no denying that he had some pretty extensive skills – it’s no wonder during his career he lit up the NBA league so perfectly.