In honor of NBA player Manute Bol, who died June 19^th at the age of 47, we would like to honor the best 7’3, or taller, players in the history of the NBA.

Originally hailing from the Sudan, Bol returned home after the NBA to assist with humanitarian efforts, which included his position as a Board Member of Sudan Sunrise, an organization working on reconciliation in the country.  Sadly, he passed away too soon from a combination of illnesses, including acute kidney failure and Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, a painful skin condition.

What interests me when we think about ranking the best NBA players 7’3 or taller is that these players have changed the way teams draft.  Sometimes, it is as simple as the old adage that teams want to draft taller, bigger players, preferably centers or big men.  That is not necessarily the case with extremely tall big men.

After the career of #1 overall pick in 1983 Ralph Sampson was derailed by injuries and three knee surgeries, it became less likely that teams would use a high draft pick to select a player of such substantial size.  Since Sampson, only a few ‘giants’ have been selected that high, Rik Smits, #2 overall in 1988, and Yao Ming, #1 overall pick in 2002.

Now, when it comes to ranking this particular type of player, you obviously consider blocks, rebounds, and points, but you also have to think about longevity and consistency.  Players this tall tend to suffer from debilitating foot and leg injuries that mar players’ careers.  But, along with all of this, we should not overlook sheer talent and skill.

7. Shawn Bradley – 7’6, 235 lb.

Bradley earns this spot over Muresan mainly because Bradley was the only center (7’3 or over) to put up about 5 consistent seasons, scoring 10 or more ppg. At least, he held that distinction before the great Yao Ming entered the league. Also, Bradley was a substantially better defender, not to mention he was an adequate free throw shooter (71.6%). And, for a player his size, Bradley’s health maintained fairly well over his 12 seasons.

6. Manute Bol – 7’7, 200 lb.

Although Bol’s scoring and rebounding were far from impressive, he currently holds the 2^nd place record in bpg with 3.34. Of Bol’s 10 seasons, his rookie year was his best, in which he averaged an NBA record 5.0 bpg. In the playoffs his rookie season, Bol increased his blocks to just under 6 bpg. Bol stands 14^th in total blocks.

5. Zydrunas Ilgauskas, “Big Z” – 7’3, 238 lb.

Despite having two of his first three seasons decimated by injury, Ilgauskas has recovered to produce a solid and consistent career, spanning 12 seasons (all with the Cavaliers). In those seasons, he averaged double-digit scoring in all of them, except in ’10 when he was relegated to the bench by the arrival of future Hall of Fame center Shaquille O’Neil. He is also the best 3-point shooting man 7’3 or taller, posting a career 31.3% from outside the arc. And, he’s second to Yao Ming, in free throw shooting (for those 7’3 and over) with 78%.

4. Rik Smits, “The Dunkin’ Dutchman – 7’4, 250 lb.

Even though “Big Z” was a better defender and rebounder, Rik Smits gets the nod because of his consistency. Unlike most centers his height, Smits had very little drop-off in production or health in his 12 seasons even though he played through a foot injury for his about his last 5 years. One knock on Smits, besides his defense, is that he never averaged 8 or more RPG.

3. Mark Eaton 7’4, 275 lb.

With Bol at 6^th and Eaton at 3^rd, clearly defense and total blocked shots are important on this list. Eaton’s body of work, rather than merely his bpg, puts him just slightly above Smits, Z, and Bol. Eaton (selected 4^th round) is the all-time leader in blocks per game (Bol 2^nd) and 4^th in total blocks (Bradley 13^th). A 2-time Defensive Player of the Year, Eaton played all his eleven seasons for the Utah Jazz. After about 6-7 seasons, his numbers started to go down hill.

2. Ralph Sampson 7’4, 228 lb.

Ralph Sampson was an amazing college player and was highly touted coming into the NBA. In his rookie year, he added a legendary playoff moment. Sampson averaged 16.6 ppg and shot 37.5% from three-point range. And, he will always be remembered for bringing Michael Cooper to his knees by defeating the Lakers in 5 games in the 1986 Western Conference Finals with an incredible turn-around jumper as time expired. Between his 4^th and 5^th seasons, his production decreased significantly and he was never the same as he was his first 3 seasons. Sampson may have become a better player than Ming, but we will never know because injuries severely hampered him during his career.

1. Yao Ming, “The Great Wall of China” – 7’6, 310 lb.

Despite sitting out last season due to injury, despite the uncertainty of his future career, and despite having a few injury-plagued seasons, Yao Ming is the only perennial all-star on this list and Ming will likely go down as the most talented player of his size ever! Through Ming’s 7 seasons, he has averaged 83.2% from the free throw line, 52.5% from the field, which easily makes him one of the best shooters of his size. With his career unfinished, his all-time numbers are hard to compare, but barring more severe injuries, Ming can continue to build his reputation as the best scoring and rebounding player 7’3 or taller.

Honorable Mention

Gheorghe Muresan 7’7, 303 lb.

Although his second season, above, showed Muresan’s promise, his third season was hampered by injury. His production was never the same after his 4^th season. Overall, he underachieved in the rebounding department (in 5/6 seasons he averaged less than 6.8 boards). If a player is over 7’0, I do not think it’s unreasonable that they should average over 7 rebounds (given the minutes to do so).

*Note: when considering a player’s best season, I factored in more than just ppg, so you will notice that with Smits and Ilgauskas; for example, I did not choose their best scoring years. Rebounds and blocks were clearly other deciding factors.

Best of Yao Ming/Great Wall of China:

Sampson’s shot in 1986 WCF, game 5:

Best of Ralph Sampson:

Some of the Weakest Moments for Players over 7’3

Kobe dunks on Ming

Tyrus Thomas dunks on Ming

Kobe’s blocks on Ming (killer blocks and great footage)

Who doesn’t love watching Shawn Bradley (a #2 pick by Philly in 1993) get dunked on?

It’s hard to mention Bradley without thinking of how McGrady “sucked the gravity out of the building:”

R.S. De France is a College and University instructor of English Composition. He has a B.A. in English and an M.A. in Rhetoric, Composition, and Writing. One of his life-long pursuits has been writing and covering anything related to sports, specifically the NBA. Recently, De France, his wife, and another colleague started an internationally read magazine at Shwibly.com.

The internet is all a buzzin’ these days about where the big name free agents are going to sign this summer. Starting Thursday the free agency period begins and teams can start their talks with players about contracts. One of the top available big men is the Knicks All-Star David Lee. The Hoop Doctors Kevin Burke sat down with David Lee this week to talk about where he thinks he’ll be playing next season, how it felt to play in the All-Star Game, and other issues important to the ‘double-double machine’….

The Hoop Doctors resident and longtime NBA and NCAA writer Allen Moll was selected to be a part of NBA.com’s weekly Blogger Q&A feature with current TNT analyst Doug Collins. The feature runs periodically on NBA.com where each time a different NBA expert (former players, coaches, or announcers) answer questions submitted by 8-10 different accomplished writers from some of the top basketball sites across the web.

Allen had to submit three questions in advance of the feature to be approved by the hospitable head honchos over at NBA.com, to be asked to the former NBA stand-out player and coach. One of Allen’s three questions made the cut and was posed to Collins, with his response to follow. Unfortunately the questions were submitted last week and pertained to the 2nd round of the NBA Playoffs instead of his recent announcement as the new Coach of the Philadelphia 76ers

Check out Allen’s question here:

From Allen at TheHoopDoctors.com:

After Carlos Boozer’s rather lackluster play in the Jazz’s 2nd round sweep at the hands of the Lakers, where he was blocked an amazing 8 times by LA’s long defenders, will his stock take a dip in the upcoming free agent market this Summer?

DC: I don’t think so, and I think the key thing there is you have to understand, the NBA game is a game of match ups and how does your team match up against the opponent? We talked about the Phoenix Suns earlier and the size of the Lakers, and what a difficult match up that was going to be for the Suns.

What you saw in Game #1 was Stoudemire mainly taking shot jump shots the entire night because it was tough for him to play in the lane against the size of the Los Angeles Lakers. So his game changed last night, he was a jump shooter. Carlos Boozer is an undersized power player so when he gets played by bigger players he’s forced to take jump shots and he does not have the opportunity in the paint that he has against a Denver, who had a smaller front line. With Carlos I’ve always felt like if you can play him with a bigger defender, you make him a jump shooter and you take away a lot of what the Utah Jazz does when they try to bash you and get the ball inside and get those high percentage shots in the lane. So I think when you look at Boozer against the Lakers, to me it’s like watching Amaze Stoudemire against the Lakers and how their size forces them to change their game.

To check out the entire Q&A With Doug Collins click here.

Thanks to the fine folks at NBA.com, Doug Collins, and Scott Barrett.

There are few things in this world better than basketball and a good movie. The pot is sweetened even more if the two are combined. Well, we are in luck.  On May 14, Just Wright, a romantic sports comedy from Fox Searchlight, hits the big screen.

Just Wright stars Queen Latifah, as Leslie Wright, a straight-shooting physical therapist who gets the dream job of working with NBA All-Star Scott McKnight, played by hip hop legend Common.  All is going well until Leslie finds herself falling for Scott, forcing her to choose between the gig of a lifetime and the tug-of-war inside her heart.

Oblivious to her romantic overtures, McKnight is instead drawn to the affections of Leslie’s gorgeous childhood friend who has her sights set on being an NBA trophy wife.  The film also features cameos by NBA players and sports figures including Dwyane Wade, Rashard Lewis, Jalen Rose, Rajon Rondo, Marv Albert and many others.

Just a few days before the movie is set to debut, I was fortunate enough to be a part of a brief conference call, along with others, who had the opportunity to speak with leading man and Chicago native, Common, about his role playing an NBA star, basketball and life in general.

Other participant: Hey, Common. We know you’re from Chicago and were also a Bulls ballboy growing up. Can you talk about that experience?

Common: That was a great experience. Being able to see Michael Jordan so often was something I’ll never forget. I will always remember how hungry he was a a young player and that is why he ended up being the best ever. But, I also remember a funny story: as a young player, he used to walk around with a radio listening to his music. Rod Thorne asked him to turn it down. Well, about 3 preseason games later, they left him alone because they realized that they had greatness on their hands. It was fun being next to greatness.

Kevin: Hey, Common. Thanks for making yourself available for a few minutes.

Common: Absolutely. My pleasure

Kevin: In playing the role for the movie, do you think you got a true sense for what it may be like to be an actual NBA superstar?

Common: Definitely. I feel like I did everything they normally do except travel. The travel was the only part missing. But I talked with the players, played with them all the time as if it were a team practice. I actually had to train as if I was really in the NBA. I even went to a meeting with Rondo to go see his agent. For those two months while we were shooting the film, I really felt like I was in the league. I got that emotional charge while we were filming so it definitely felt very real. Acting is so much for to me.

Kevin : How would you compare the emotional charge of playing ball while shooting the movie to when you’re on stage performing?

Common: The emotion is the same but it’s a slightly different type of charge because you know you’re playing to different audiences. But like I said, the emotion is just the same for each.

Other participant: How did you go about training for the film? What was the regiment like?

Common: Aww man it was intense. I did alot of cardio and worked out with the Nets trainer constantly. It was like I was actually a part of a team. I was doing all kinds of drills. Defensive drills and everything. I even put up 300-500 shots a day. I truly felt like an athlete. Aside from that I went to play at a couple of parks out in LA with Baron Davis. I also went with him to UCLA to play too, but I had to take it easy at first because I had a bad back. And it’s funny because whenever somebody plays against somebody they recognize from TV, they try extra hard to show you up. That’s what I had to go through: guys trying extra hard against me to block my shot.

Other participant: Being a Chicago native and a long-time Bulls fan, what do you think of Derrick Rose and who should they add around him?

Common: I first saw Derrick as a sophomore in high school and couldn’t believe what I was seeing, and he’s only gotten better. I think he will go down as one of the best Point Guards of all time. As far as who they should bring, I’d like to see Dwayne Wade as a Bull alongside Rose. People say that there wouldn’t be enought basketballs on the court for these two guys to play together, but I think they’d do just fine. I knew Dwayne before this movie and have been telling him for a while that he needs to play for he Bulls, but he’ll ultimately do what’  for him. I also like Amare Stoudemire too. It will be interesting to see what happens though. That’s why I love basketball. Although I didn’t grown up with him, my father played in the ABA, so basketball is in my blood.

Other participant: Why is Just Wright more than just a basketball movie?

Common: Because it has a great plot. It’s a guy who is in love with the game of basketball who also manages to find love in the most unlikely place. I don’t wan to give away too much of the movie but it’s a an interesting love triangle and you’ll really walk away feeling inspired. And also, keep in mind that the basketball being played in the film is authentic which makes it even more believable. I do dunk in the movie, but I’ll be honest, they had to lower the rim 4 inches for me to pull that off (laughs) because I never really hops. My game was always about handle. But after shooting this film, I think I want a tryout for an NBA squad (laughs).

If you’re looking for your everyday, predictable basketball talk, then go somewhere else, because Kevin Burke of The Kevin Burke Project brings provocative, thought provoking content about basketball as only he can. Kevin also hosts The Hoop Doctors weekly podcast show, which you can subscribe too for free on iTunes.

Do you long for some great throwback NBA and NCAA footage of superstars of the past featuring some of the game’s best players?  Do you miss watching games in which the jump shot was an art form and not an afterthought?  Longing to see some of the hardwood’s greatest grudge matches of teams wearing some of the league’s ugliest uniforms?  If you are a fan of the game from back in the day, this is the series for you.  Welcome to Vintage Video.

Way back before NBA superstar Dirk Nowitzki was draining jumpers, winning MVP Awards, and leading his Dallas Mavericks squad deep into the playoffs, he was a gangly and uncoordinated 6′11 teenager living in Wurzburg, Germany. After failing in an attempt to follow in his father’s footsteps of becoming a international handball star, he was convinced to take up the sport of basketball. At age 15, and after growing to 6′11 tall, he joined a local basketball club called the DJK Wurzburg, where he honed his skills as a jump-shooting big man. As you can tell by this video, he still was far from a finished product (Dirk is #14).

Then only a few short years later, at the age of 19, a young Dirk was chosen to participate in the Nike Hoop Summit, where he competed with a talented group of international stars against the best US high school players. This is where Dirk caught the eye of NBA scouts by scoring 33 points, grabbing 14 rebounds, along with 3 steals, and by out-playing future NBA talents like Al Harrington and Rashard Lewis.

And if you’re still longing for some more vintage Dirk………Here is Mr. Nowitzki finishing off a near left handed poster dunk on a defender in the 2001 Eurobasket Championships.

Allen Moll is an avid NBA and College Basketball fan who watches and studies games religiously and coaches youth basketball in his native Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania.  Allen is a regular columnist for thehoopdoctors.com, Bleacherreport.com, UpperDeckblog.com, and his own site, Hoops Haven.