Average Height and Weight of Pro Basketball Players: 1945-2013

[Rose'sACL]

http://i.imgur.com/EmtQ7s1.png

The average height reaches its current average height in the early 1980s, but players were, on average, nearly 20 pounds lighter.

There was a dramatic increase in height from 1945-1983, but then average height has been virtually constant since. Average weight has grown from about 208 lbs in 1983 to over 220 lbs in 2008.

[Blue&Orange]

ped's and whatnots

Larry Bird on ped's would shit on Lebron.

[Round Mound]

[B]The 80s Era Was The NBA

[Lebron23]

ped's and whatnots

Larry Bird on ped's would shit on Lebron.


Hey Idiot,

Lebron passed the Olympic style drug test since 2004. You won't even pass an IQ Test.

[ssginc]

Hey Idiot,

Lebron passed the Olympic style drug test since 2004. You won't even pass an IQ Test.


First time I heard this... do you have a link?

[Cold soul]

That's cool.

[RichieW]

Theres significant height inflation in the NBA these days.

When Bill Russell measures 6'10", I believe he was actually 6'10. Dwight Howard is 6'9" but listed at 6'11".

Plot the heights of current players without shoes and I bet they are about the same as those in the 60's.

[Lebron23]

First time I heard this... do you have a link?


Athletes got tested before they participates in the Olympics Games. I don't understand why Midget Pacquiao was afraid of blood testing a couple of years ago. He only agreed to Vada testing after they fired Alex Ariza.

[Lebron23]

Theres significant height inflation in the NBA these days.

When Bill Russell measures 6'10", I believe he was actually 6'10. Dwight Howard is 6'9" but listed at 6'11".

Plot the heights of current players without shoes and I bet they are about the same as those in the 60's.

NBA players height are listed while wearing their sneakers, and they rounded it up. Just like a 5'10" DJ Augustin who's listed at 6 feet tall.

[CavaliersFTW]

Data for such a chart is far from reliable, most player height data is drastically skewed, and went from erring on the side of conservative from prior to the 1970's, to erring on the side of exaggerated from the 1980's to present when NBA players became more expensive, profitable and marketable. Weight data is going to be even worse, player weights change throughout their careers, some guys can put on 50lbs, other guys 15, when was the weight data taken? Were the players rookies? Veterans? There's just so much that makes any chart like this impossible to make reliably.

[navy]

Have you seen the muscles players have these days?

[BigMacAttack]

Data for such a chart is far from reliable, most player height data is drastically skewed, and went from erring on the side of conservative from prior to the 1970's, to erring on the side of exaggerated from the 1980's to present when NBA players became more expensive, profitable and marketable. Weight data is going to be even worse, player weights change throughout their careers, some guys can put on 50lbs, other guys 15, when was the weight data taken? Where the players rookies? There's just so much that makes any chart like this impossible to make reliably.

This, humans have not evolved physically in half a lifetime.

The sports science and training techniques have improved beyond measuring though.

[Rose'sACL]

Data for such a chart is far from reliable, most player height data is drastically skewed, and went from erring on the side of conservative from prior to the 1970's, to erring on the side of exaggerated from the 1980's to present when NBA players became more expensive, profitable and marketable. Weight data is going to be even worse, player weights change throughout their careers, some guys can put on 50lbs, other guys 15, when was the weight data taken? Where the players rookies? There's just so much that makes any chart like this impossible to make reliably.
I can understand small difference in ht and weight between 60s and now but this much difference clearly shows that players were inferior size wise. I know you will never believe anyone but yourself though.
Do you also believe racism wasn't a big factor in more white players in league in 60s than now?

[Lebron23]

NBA athletes today weighed more than the 1950 to 1970's players. A Prime Shaq would destroy Wilt in the post. He was also the superior playoffs and finals performer.

[BigMacAttack]

I can understand small difference in ht and weight between 60s and now but this much difference clearly shows that players were inferior size wise. I know you will never believe anyone but yourself though.
Do you also believe racism wasn't a big factor in more white players in league in 60s than now?

There would be a small difference, mainly due to advances in medicine and human health. Less debilitating disease, better diets and understanding of exercise etc

[BigMacAttack]

NBA athletes today weighed more than the 1950 to 1970's players. A Prime Shaq would destroy Wilt in the post. He was also the superior playoffs and finals performer.


Give Wilt modern training techniques and sports science and he could guard Shaq, he would be as dominant as shaq was in shaqs era.

Wilt is one of the best athletes the NBA has ever seen.

[CavaliersFTW]

I can understand small difference in ht and weight between 60s and now but this much difference clearly shows that players were inferior size wise. I know you will never believe anyone but yourself though.
Do you also believe racism wasn't a big factor in more white players in league in 60s than now?
White people are the same heights/weights as black people, scouts look for the same traits in both for good basketball players regardless of your color in case you didn't know.

Also you want to know what I mean between differences in how players are listed then vs now?

Oscar Robertson 6-4 and 3/4 listed 6-5
Jerry West 6-4 and 1/4 listed 6-2 on bball reference, 6-3 on team roster
Bill Russell 6-9 and 5/8ths listed 6-9 on team roster, 6-10 on bball reference
Bob Pettit 6-8 and 1/4 listed 6-9
Willie Naulls 6-6 and 1/2 listed 6-6
Wilt Chamberlain 7-1 and 1/16th listed 7-1
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 7-1 and 7/8ths listed 7-2
Jerry Lucas 6-7 1/2 listed 6-8


I could go on and on, players in that time listed either conservatively, or approximately what their real life heights were. Players from the 1980's and on wards do NOT, most exaggerate their list info.

Michael Jordan 6-4 and 7/8ths listed 6-6
Charles Barkley 6-4 and 5/8ths listed 6-6
Kobe Bryant 6-4 and 3/4 listed 6-6
Magic Johnson 6-7 1/2 listed 6-9
Ben Wallace 6-7 listed 6-9
Kevin Love 6-7 and 3/4 listed 6-10
Dwight Howard 6-9 listed 6-11
Hasheem Thabeet 7-1 and 1/4 listed 7-3

etc etc etc.

The 1970's was the start of a time when contract negotiations and marketing of their own stock became huge for players, this was the beginning of the time when players were paid by POTENTIAL rather than what was proven. IE Pistol Pete and his million dollar rookie contract. In the 1980's this was exaggerated even more by outside marketing companies trying to sell products off players. Players began to give themselves that extra inch or two to become larger than life. At some point it even became habit to only use "in shoes" as an excuse to bump height even further, usually rounding up even from that. Thus, the chart is inherently skewed and not reliable. It is based entirely on erroneous listed info.

[sc19]

Give Wilt modern training techniques and sports science and he could guard Shaq, he would be as dominant as shaq was in shaqs era.

Wilt is one of the best athletes the NBA has ever seen.
He choked against short White guys when it matter the most. It'll be worse with modern basketball big black guys. :facepalm

[Psileas]

People talk about the chart supposedly proving something about the 60's based on weight, but what I see is that the average weight increase from 1991 to 2001 was as big as the average weight increase from 1955 to 1991.

So, forget the 60's, the most radical difference in weight happened in the 90's.

[Psileas]

He choked against short White guys when it matter the most. It'll be worse with modern basketball big black guys.

:facepalm <----Fixed place

[BigMacAttack]

He choked against short White guys when it matter the most. It'll be worse with modern basketball big black guys. :facepalm

You really think Wilt wouldnt be dominant in this era? or any era? Hahaha wow facepalm is right you dumb ****.

[CavaliersFTW]

Give Wilt modern training techniques and sports science and he could guard Shaq, he would be as dominant as shaq was in shaqs era.

Wilt is one of the best athletes the NBA has ever seen.
Wilt wouldn't need modern anything to guard Shaq or play against him, Wilt - as he was - was better than Shaq.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nGddmnVGTs

[kenny817]

ped's and whatnots

Larry Bird on ped's would shit on Lebron.


Scratch the two words after "Bird" and its still a true statement

tbh

[Blue&Orange]

Hey Idiot,

Lebron passed the Olympic style drug test since 2004. You won't even pass an IQ Test.
So did Lance Amstrong you stupid c.unt. The only gap bigger than our IQ's is your momma snatch.