Basketball Shorts (Part 2)
Avery Johnson
Next on the list of shortest players is Avery Johnson (5 feet 10 inches). He was born on the 25th of March, 1965 in New Orleans, Louisiana. His small height and his close relation with team mate David "The Admiral"
Robinson earned him the nickname “Little General”. He coached the Dallas Mavericks and led them to their first NBA Finals and four 50 plus win seasons. Johnson started his playing career as a high school senior in 1983. He led his team to a 35-0 record and
the Class 4A Louisiana State Championship. He settled down in the Southern University where he played in his senior season. After playing for the USBL’s Palm Beach Stingrays, he was signed on by the Seattle Supersonics and spent 16 years playing in the NBA.
He played for many teams including the Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors, and Dallas Mavericks. He was often traded, and even waived during mid seasons. He is most famous for his time with the San Antonio Spurs, who he led to victory against
the New York Knicks. He retired in 2007 after facing against the Los Angeles Clippers and was inducted in the San Antonio Sports Hall of Fame in 2009. Johnson also spent some time in the coaching field. He coached the Dallas Mavericks until he was let go in
2008. After being fired from coaching, Johnson spent two years with ESPN as an analyst until he got an offer to become the coach for the New Jersey Nets.
Michael Adams
Michael Adams (5 feet 10 inches) started his basketball career playing point guard for his college in Boston. He was drafted into the NBA by the Sacramento Kings in 1985. His career started off slow, averaging only 2.2 points in
a season, but as he played for other teams, his skills got better. He had his best season with the Denver Nuggets during the 1990-1991 season. He averaged 26.5 points and boasted 10.5 assists per game. He rejoined the Washington Bullets (having left them before
for the Nuggets) and appeared in his very first NBA All-Star game in 1992. Adams retired in 1996 after playing for the Charlotte Hornets. By the time he ended his career, he had a total of 9621 points and 4209 assists. He also remains among the leaders in
the three-point field goals (made and attempted).
Calvin Murphy
Calvin Murphy played guard for the Houston Rockets. He was drafted by the NBA in 1970. In his very first season he was selected to be eligible for the NBA All-Rookie team. At 5 feet 9 inches, he was known for being very quick and
having a defensive style of game play. Murphy was coined as one of the best free throw shooters in the history of the NBA. He posted the record of most consecutive free throws made in a season, a record which has since been broken. He was also the leading
scorer in the Rockets team as well until Hakeem Olajuwon broke Murphy’s record. He was added to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993 which was the same year he retired. He continued to work for the Rockets as their ESPN analyst after retiring, and in 2007 he
was hired to be on a show called “The Calvin Murphy Show”, which was called off in 2010.
Nathaniel Cornelius Robinson
Nathaniel Cornelius Robinson measured only 5 feet and 9 inches (this measurement includes the shoes he wears). This makes him one of the shortest players who are currently in the NBA. He is known for his extremely high vertical
leap and holds the record of highest vertical leap at 43.5 inches off the ground. He is a 3 time winner of the Slam Dunk Contest (winning just one is hard enough when you are as short as Robinson). After a very successful high school and college career, Robinson
was drafted by the Phoenix Suns, before being traded to the New York Knicks. He played 72 games in his rookie year and averaged 9.3 points and 2 assists per game. He also won the 2006 Sprite Rising Stars Slam Dunk Contest, taking 14 tries to make his last
dunk (he dunked over Spud Webb, receiving the full 50 points). Robinson came in second place in the 2006-2007 Slam Dunk contest. In 2008-2009, he won his second Slam Dunk Contest, by a 52% vote from his fans and grabbed hold of his third win in 2010. In the
same year, he changed teams and started playing for the Boston Celtics, with whom he still plays until now.
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