The Tallest NBA Players of All Time
On this page16
- 01Gheorghe Muresan
- 02Manute Bol
- 03Yao Ming
- 04Shawn Bradley
- 05Tacko Fall
- 06Slavko Vranes
- 07Chuck Nevitt
- 08Pavel Podkolzin
- 09Ralph Sampson
- 10Mark Eaton
- 11Boban Marjanovic
- 12Rik Smits
- 13How we ranked the tallest NBA players
- 14How the NBA measures height
- 15At a glance: tallest NBA players by height
- 16Why height alone is not enough
This list is ranked strictly by listed playing height in the NBA, tallest first, using official league and Basketball-Reference listings. Ties are broken by nothing — players at the same height share a rank, and we note where sources disagree on an inch.
- Co-record holder
Gheorghe Muresan
Muresan is one of only two men ever listed at 7 feet 7 inches (2.31 m) in an NBA game, which is why he shares the record rather than trailing it. He was the more polished scorer of the two 7'7" giants: he averaged a career-high 14.5 points per game for the Washington Bullets in 1995-96 and won the 1996 Most Improved Player award, a trophy no other player this tall has claimed.
His body, not his height, ended things early — chronic knee and back problems limited him to parts of six seasons. Off the court the Romanian center became a recognizable face, co-starring with Billy Crystal in the 1998 comedy My Giant.
Height: 7'7" · Team: Bullets / Nets · Career: 1993-2000 · Feat: 1996 Most Improved Player
- Co-record holder
Manute Bol
Bol matches Muresan at 7'7" but on a frame that weighed barely 200 pounds, giving him one of the longest defensive reaches the league has seen. He ranks level on height and above almost everyone on shot-blocking: he led the NBA in total blocks twice and is one of only two players in history to retire with more career blocks than points.
That defensive specialty is what separates him from the scoring-minded Muresan. The Sudanese-born center was also a novelty three-point shooter late in his career and, after basketball, a well-known humanitarian for his home region.
Height: 7'7" · Teams: Bullets, Warriors, 76ers, Heat · Career: 1985-1995 · Feat: More career blocks than points
- Tallest superstar
Yao Ming
Yao is the tallest player ever to become a genuine franchise cornerstone, which is what lifts him clear of the other 7'6" names below despite sharing their height. He was an eight-time All-Star, the 2002 No. 1 overall pick as the first international player without U.S. college experience taken first, and a 2016 Hall of Fame inductee.
His interior scoring and rebounding made him the offensive anchor of the Houston Rockets until foot injuries forced an early retirement. Big men of his mold recur on lists like the most rebounds in NBA history.
Height: 7'6" · Team: Houston Rockets · Career: 2002-2011 · Feat: 8x All-Star, Hall of Fame 2016
- Draft-hyped big
Shawn Bradley
Bradley shares the 7'6" mark but built his value at the other end of the floor from Yao. Taken No. 2 overall in 1993, he led the NBA in total blocked shots in 1996-97 and finished with more than 2,100 career blocks.
He ranks below Yao here on height ties because he never became a scoring threat to match his draft billing — his role settled into rim protection and rebounding across stops in Philadelphia, New Jersey and Dallas.
Height: 7'6" · Teams: 76ers, Nets, Mavericks · Career: 1993-2005 · Feat: Led NBA in blocks 1996-97
- Cult favorite
Tacko Fall
Also listed at 7'6", Fall reached the NBA undrafted in 2019 and became a fan favorite in Boston purely on scale — his standing reach cleared the rim without a jump. Unlike the two record holders, he never locked down a rotation role and appeared mostly in limited minutes.
He later continued his career overseas, including a stint in China, but his height alone keeps him inside the all-time top group.
Height: 7'6" · Team: Boston Celtics · Career: 2019-2022 · Note: Undrafted fan favorite
- Three-minute footnote
Slavko Vranes
Vranes is the extreme case of height without a career. Listed at 7'6" (some sources say 7'5"), the Montenegrin center played exactly three minutes in a single NBA appearance for Portland in 2004 and never returned to the league.
He ranks here on measured height alone, a reminder that a spot on this leaderboard says nothing about production — his entire NBA sample is shorter than one timeout-to-timeout stretch.
Height: 7'6" · Team: Portland Trail Blazers · Career: 2004 (one game) · Note: Three total NBA minutes
- Journeyman
Chuck Nevitt
At 7'5", Nevitt bridged the 7'6" tier and the 7'4" group. He was a roster curiosity more than a rotation piece across a decade with several teams, yet he collected an NBA title with the 1985 Los Angeles Lakers.
His career shows how a rare height gets a player repeated looks: teams kept a spot for the possibility of a defensive big, even when the minutes rarely came.
Height: 7'5" · Teams: Rockets, Lakers, others · Career: 1982-1994 · Feat: 1985 NBA champion
- Draft gamble
Pavel Podkolzin
Podkolzin, also 7'5", was a draft-day swing on size — his rights were traded to Dallas in 2004 — but he appeared in only six NBA games. He sits level with Nevitt on height and below him on résumé, with no title or lasting role to point to.
His brief run underlines a pattern in this range: past 7'4", raw inches draw draft capital that on-court production rarely repays.
Height: 7'5" · Team: Dallas Mavericks · Career: 2004-2006 · Note: Six career NBA games
- Star exception
Ralph Sampson
Sampson, at 7'4", is the achievement outlier of the 7'4" group. He was the 1984 Rookie of the Year, a four-time All-Star, and reached the Hall of Fame in 2012 — a résumé that ranks far above taller names on this list.
Paired with Hakeem Olajuwon in Houston's "Twin Towers," he showed guard-like skill for his size before knee injuries cut the prime short. On height he lands here; on career he outranks nearly everyone above him.
Height: 7'4" · Team: Houston Rockets · Career: 1983-1992 · Feat: 4x All-Star, Hall of Fame 2012
- Defensive record-holder
Mark Eaton
Eaton turned 7'4" into the most dominant shot-blocking career of his era. He set the single-season blocks record with 456 in 1984-85, won Defensive Player of the Year twice, and retired as the NBA's all-time leader in blocks per game.
Where Sampson ranks on offense, Eaton ranks on defense: he never averaged double-figure points but built a Hall-of-Fame-caliber case entirely by protecting the rim for the Utah Jazz.
Height: 7'4" · Team: Utah Jazz · Career: 1982-1993 · Feat: 456 blocks in 1984-85 (single-season record)
- Modern cult figure
Boban Marjanovic
Marjanovic, listed at 7'4", is the tallest of the recent-era names here and one of the most efficient per-minute big men in the game. Limited to spot minutes, he has posted eye-popping per-36 rebounding and scoring numbers across several teams.
He ranks with the 7'4" group on height and stands apart as a durable modern novelty — a genuine giant who has stuck in the league through the pace-and-space era rather than fading with it.
Height: 7'4" · Teams: Spurs, Pistons, Clippers, others · Career: 2015-present · Note: Elite per-minute rebounder
- Finals big
Rik Smits
Smits, the 7'4" "Dunking Dutchman," was the most complete offensive player in this height band outside Yao and Sampson. The No. 2 overall pick in 1988, he anchored the Indiana Pacers' front line for his entire career and started at center on their 2000 NBA Finals team.
Unlike the footnotes at 7'5" and 7'6", he was a long-term starter with a soft mid-range touch — proof that a player this tall could carry real skill, not just length.
Height: 7'4" · Team: Indiana Pacers · Career: 1988-2000 · Feat: 2000 NBA Finals starter
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- Gheorghe Muresan
- Manute Bol
- Yao Ming
- Shawn Bradley
- Tacko Fall
- Slavko Vranes
- Chuck Nevitt
- Pavel Podkolzin
- Ralph Sampson
- Mark Eaton
- Boban Marjanovic
- Rik Smits
Audience ranking
How everyone ranked them
Built from reader rankings using position-based points.
The ranked cards above run tallest-first, from the two 7’7” record holders down through the 7’4” group. The sections below explain how the list was built, why NBA heights shift over time, and why sitting near the top of it never guaranteed a great career.
How we ranked the tallest NBA players
Placement here is decided by one number: a player’s listed NBA playing height, tallest to shortest. We used official league listings and Basketball-Reference as the primary references, and where a player has multiple documented listings we noted the discrepancy in the card rather than picking the flattering one.
Players at the same height share a rank — there is no tiebreaker on productivity, awards or fame. That is deliberate: this is a height leaderboard, not a “best tall players” ranking. It is why a three-minute NBA appearance (Slavko Vranes) can sit at the same rank as an eight-time All-Star (Yao Ming).
How the NBA measures height
Historical NBA heights were often generous. For decades, teams reported players in shoes and rounded up, which inflated some listings by an inch or more. Since 2019, the league has required barefoot measurements, which trimmed a few official numbers and is why a modern giant like Victor Wembanyama is listed at 7’4” rather than a rounded-up figure.
That measurement history matters for a list like this. The order at the very top — Muresan and Bol at 7’7”, then the 7’6” tier — has held for decades and is well documented. Toward the middle, an inch of listing difference between sources can move a player between tiers, which is why several cards flag alternate heights.
At a glance: tallest NBA players by height
| Height | Players |
|---|---|
| 7’7” | Gheorghe Muresan, Manute Bol |
| 7’6” | Yao Ming, Shawn Bradley, Tacko Fall, Slavko Vranes |
| 7’5” | Chuck Nevitt, Pavel Podkolzin |
| 7’4” | Ralph Sampson, Mark Eaton, Boban Marjanovic, Rik Smits, Victor Wembanyama |
Victor Wembanyama appears in the 7’4” row as the tallest active player, though his career is still being written and he is excluded from the historical ranked cards above on that basis.
Why height alone is not enough
The leaderboard is the clearest evidence that size opens the door but does not walk through it. Muresan and Bol had entirely different careers at identical height; Vranes and Podkolzin barely played; Sampson and Eaton reached the Hall-of-Fame conversation on skill and defense rather than raw inches. Coordination, durability and touch decided who became a star.
The opposite extreme tells the same story from the other side. On our leaderboard of the shortest NBA players of all time, 5’3” Muggsy Bogues built a long career on speed and vision. Longevity records such as the oldest NBA players in history are likewise filled with players of every size, and explosiveness lists like the highest vertical jumps in the NBA reward athletes far shorter than anyone on this page.
For a closer look at the giant who nearly reached the NBA, read about Robert Bobroczky next.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the tallest NBA player of all time?+
Gheorghe Muresan and Manute Bol are tied as the tallest players in NBA history, both officially listed at 7 feet 7 inches (2.31 m). Muresan played for the Washington Bullets and New Jersey Nets in the 1990s, while Bol was a shot-blocking specialist for four teams. No player taller than 7'7" has ever appeared in an NBA game, so the two share the record outright.
How tall is Yao Ming?+
Yao Ming stands 7 feet 6 inches (2.29 m), making him the tallest player ever to become a genuine NBA superstar. The Houston Rockets center was an eight-time All-Star, the 2002 No. 1 overall draft pick, and a 2016 Hall of Fame inductee. He shares the 7'6" listing with Shawn Bradley, Tacko Fall and Slavko Vranes, but his career dwarfs theirs in achievement.
Was Manute Bol or Gheorghe Muresan taller?+
Neither — they were exactly the same height. Both Manute Bol and Gheorghe Muresan were officially listed at 7 feet 7 inches, so they share the record as the joint-tallest players in NBA history. The difference was build, not height: Bol was famously thin at about 200 pounds and blocked shots, while Muresan was a bulkier scoring center who won 1996 Most Improved Player.
Who is the tallest active NBA player?+
Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs is the tallest active player, officially confirmed at 7 feet 4 inches barefoot with a wingspan near eight feet. He is not the tallest ever, but his mix of height, mobility and shooting makes him unlike any big man before him. Boban Marjanovic, also listed at 7'4", is the other giant of the current era.
Why does the NBA measure players without shoes now?+
Since 2019, the NBA has required teams to report barefoot heights rather than the shoe-inflated listings common in earlier decades. That change trimmed an inch or two off some official figures and is why Victor Wembanyama is listed at 7'4" rather than a rounded-up number. Historical listings for older players were often generous, which is why some heights on this list vary slightly by source.
Has any 8-foot player ever played in the NBA?+
No. The tallest players in NBA history top out at 7 feet 7 inches (Muresan and Bol). Reports of taller basketball figures such as Suleiman Ali Nashnush or Sun Mingming refer to players outside the NBA, in other leagues or exhibitions. Within the NBA itself, 7'7" has been the ceiling for decades, and no confirmed 7'8"-or-taller player has appeared in a regular-season game.
Sources
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