Basketball is the one sport where being the tallest person in the gym is close to a job requirement, and even by NBA standards a few players stand apart. The tallest basketball players in the world right now measure 7'3" (2.21 m) or more, about eight inches above the average NBA player and roughly a foot and a half above the average American man. This guide ranks the ten tallest active professionals, then looks back at the tallest basketball players of all time, from Soviet-era giants to the two 7'7" centers who share the NBA record.
Key Takeaways
- At 7'6" (2.29 m), Senegalese center Tacko Fall is the tallest basketball player in the professional game today, and he returned to the NBA on a training-camp contract with the Philadelphia 76ers in September 2026 [3].
- The tallest basketball player at any level is 20-year-old Olivier Rioux, a 7'9" (2.36 m) center who now plays college basketball at UC Irvine [12].
- Victor Wembanyama, listed at 7'4", is the tallest player in a regular NBA rotation. The NBA has measured players without shoes since 2019, so today's listings run slightly shorter than older ones [2].
- All ten players on the active list are centers, because teams steer their tallest prospects toward the position where reach blocks shots and wins rebounds.
- In the all-time ranking, Libya's Suleiman Ali Nashnush (about 8'0") and the Soviet Union's Alexander Sizonenko (7'10") sit at the top, while Gheorghe Mureșan and Manute Bol share the NBA record at 7'7" [1] [15].
The Top 10 Tallest Basketball Players Right Now
This ranking of the tallest basketball players covers those active in a professional league as of early October 2026, ordered by listed height. Preseason cuts and free-agent signings can move names on or off the list within weeks, and six players currently share the 7'3" mark, so players at the same height are listed alphabetically by surname.
Tacko Fall
SenegalAfter three seasons away from the NBA, spent mostly in China, Fall signed an Exhibit 10 deal with Philadelphia on September 1, 2026, and will compete for a roster or two-way spot in camp [3] [4]. His 2019 Draft Combine numbers still hold league records for height in shoes (7'7"), wingspan, and standing reach [4].
Xu Xin
ChinaLittle known outside China until recently, Xu broke out in 2025–26, averaging about 11 points and 8 rebounds a game for Guangzhou. He also played for China's senior national team in 2026 [5].
Boban Marjanović
SerbiaThe oldest player on this list spent nine seasons with six NBA teams before heading back overseas [1]. In August 2026 he suited up for the Philippines' Strong Group Athletics at the Jones Cup in Taiwan, where his shooting touch gave the team a new look on offense [6].
Victor Wembanyama
FranceThe No. 1 pick in 2023 and a two-time All-Star, Wembanyama is the tallest basketball player in a regular NBA rotation [1]. When the Spurs measured him barefoot before his rookie season, he came in at 7'3½" [2].
Bol Bol
South SudanThe son of NBA co-record holder Manute Bol played for Denver, Orlando, and Phoenix before joining TNT Tropang 5G for the Philippine Basketball Association's 2026 Commissioner's Cup [11]. He had not announced a club for 2026–27 at the time of writing.
Zach Edey
CanadaEdey won national player of the year twice at Purdue before Memphis drafted him in 2024 [1]. He measured 7'3¼" without shoes at the 2023 Draft Combine, a quarter-inch shy of Wembanyama's official figure [2].
Youssoupha Fall
SenegalFall spent seven straight seasons in the EuroLeague, the last two with FC Barcelona, and won league titles in France and Spain along the way. He signed with the Nanjing Tongxi Monkey Kings in August 2026 [10].
Aday Mara
SpainOklahoma City took Mara 12th overall in 2026 after he played a key role in Michigan's run to the national title. At the Draft Combine he measured 7'3" barefoot with a 9'9" standing reach, one of the longest ever recorded [7].
Edy Tavares
Cape VerdeReal Madrid's defensive anchor since 2017, Tavares made the All-EuroLeague Second Team in 2025–26 before a knee ligament injury ended his playoff run early [9]. Opponents' two-point shooting drops sharply whenever he is on the floor.
Rocco Zikarsky
AustraliaThe youngest player on this list, Zikarsky enters his second NBA season on a two-way contract with Minnesota [8]. At 20, he gives Minnesota a long-term development piece in the frontcourt.
Honorable Mentions: Prospects and the Women's Game
Two players are taller than everyone on the professional list but haven't turned pro yet. Olivier Rioux became the tallest basketball player in college history when he debuted for Florida in 2025, and he transferred to UC Irvine in April 2026 in search of more minutes [12]. Australian teenager Jongkuch Mach, already 7'6" at 17, is drawing attention from U.S. college and pro scouts [13]. In the women's game, China's Zhang Ziyu is the tallest basketball player ever to compete in a FIBA women's event [14].
- Olivier Rioux7'9" (2.36 m) · C · UC Irvine (NCAA)
- Jongkuch Mach7'6" (2.29 m) · C · Australia (NBL1)
- Zhang Ziyu7'4" (2.23 m) · C · China women's NT
- Margo Dydek7'2" (2.18 m) · C · Tallest in WNBA history
Top 10 Tallest Basketball Players of All Time
The ranking above covers active professionals only. The table below ranks the tallest basketball players across the sport's history, including anyone who played at the senior level, meaning a professional league, a senior national team, or selection in the NBA Draft, and it marks each player as active or retired. NBA heights come from the league's historical listings [1], and other heights come from Guinness measurements or the most widely cited figure, cross-checked across sources [15] [16]. Where sources disagree, the range is noted. Players at the same height are listed alphabetically by surname, so the table runs to 12 names because three centers share 10th place at 7'6". Amateurs, college-only players, and players whose pro experience came only in minor or exhibition leagues are left out. If college players counted, Rioux's 7'9" would tie him for third.
| Photo | Player | Height | Position | Country | Status | Known For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Suleiman Ali NashnushLibya national team | 8'0"2.45 m peak; about 2.39 m as a player | Center | Libya | Retired | Most often cited as the tallest basketball player ever, though records from his era are thin |
 |
Alexander SizonenkoSpartak Leningrad, Stroitel Kuybyshev | 7'10"2.39 m | Center | Soviet Union | Retired | Measured by Guinness and named the world's tallest man in 1991 |
 |
Uvais AkhtaevBurevestnik Alma-Ata | 7'9"2.36 m; sources range 2.32–2.38 m | Center | Soviet Union | Retired | Credited as the first Soviet player to dunk with two hands |
 |
Sun MingmingBeijing Ducks | 7'9"2.36 m | Center | China | Retired | Guinness-measured; played in China's CBA and the U.S. minor-league ABA |
 |
Ri Myung-hunNorth Korea national team | 7'8.5"2.35 m | Center | North Korea | Retired | U.S. sanctions blocked his bid to play in the NBA in the 1990s |
 |
Yasutaka OkayamaDrafted by Golden State, 1981 | 7'8"2.34 m | Center | Japan | Retired | Tallest player ever drafted by an NBA team (171st pick), though he never played in the league |
 |
Manute BolBullets, Warriors, 76ers, Heat | 7'7"2.31 m | Center | Sudan | Retired | Joint-tallest player in NBA history; averaged 3.3 blocks per game |
 |
Gheorghe MureșanBullets, Nets | 7'7"2.31 m | Center | Romania | Retired | Joint-tallest player in NBA history; 1996 Most Improved Player |
 |
Slavko VranešPortland Trail Blazers | 7'6.5"2.30 m; listed 7'5" in the NBA | Center | Montenegro | Retired | Played one NBA game, in January 2004 |
 |
Shawn Bradley76ers, Nets, Mavericks | 7'6"2.29 m | Center | United States | Retired | Blocked 2,119 shots across 832 NBA games |
|
Tacko FallPhiladelphia 76ers | 7'6"2.29 m | Center | Senegal | Active | Tallest active professional; holds NBA Draft Combine measurement records |
 |
Yao MingHouston Rockets | 7'6"2.29 m | Center | China | Retired | Tallest All-Star and tallest Hall of Famer in NBA history |
Only one active player, Tacko Fall, makes the all-time list. That is the reverse of the pattern in our ranking of the tallest soccer players right now, where active players hold six of the top eight spots. Part of the gap comes down to measurement. NBA listings before the 2019–20 season were usually taken in shoes, while the league now measures players barefoot, which made a number of current players "shrink" by about an inch on paper [2]. Older international figures, meanwhile, often rest on a single Guinness measurement or a handful of reports, so the comparison across eras is approximate.
The rest of the gap may reflect how the game has changed. Several of the tallest basketball players in history saw limited minutes: Vraneš played a single NBA game, and Sizonenko's mobility declined as he kept growing [1] [15]. Today's teams want centers who can run the floor, defend in space, and shoot, which helps explain why a 7'4" player like Wembanyama has become the league's defining big man while 7'8" giants remain rare. That is one reading of the pattern, since a ranking can't show why any team picks a particular player.
Why Are the Tallest Basketball Players Almost Always Centers?
Every one of the tallest basketball players in both rankings is a center, and that comes down to a simple selection effect. Coaches notice unusually tall teenagers early and put them near the basket, where reach blocks shots, wins rebounds, and turns lobs into easy points. The same logic answers the question of whether basketball actually makes anyone taller: genetics sets the height first, and the sport, and then the position, follows.
Players like Wembanyama and Bol Bol, who handle the ball and shoot from the perimeter, stand out because most players their size are asked to stay close to the rim. Height helps almost everywhere on a basketball court, but the trade-off in quickness grows with every inch, and center is the spot where that trade-off costs the least.
How These Heights Compare to Everyday Averages
The average NBA player in 2025–26 stood about 6'7" (2.00 m), roughly eight inches taller than the average American man at about 5'9" [17]. So even the 7'3" names at the bottom of the active list tower over most of their teammates, and Tacko Fall stands nearly two feet above the average American man.
At the far end of the scale, the tallest basketball players still fall short of the most extreme heights ever documented. Turkey's Sultan Kösen, the tallest living person, stands 8'2.8" (2.51 m), about six inches above Rioux, and Robert Wadlow reached 8'11" (2.72 m) before his death in 1940 [15]. For the medical background behind heights at that level, see who the tallest person in history really was.
Height Ladder: The Tallest Basketball Players vs. Everyday Heights
Bars start at 5 feet so the differences are easier to see.
For most people, height of any kind starts with family. Twin studies put the heritability of adult height at roughly 80%, a figure explored in more detail in whether height comes from mom or dad.
Final Thoughts
This list of the tallest basketball players will look different within a few weeks. NBA preseason cuts decide whether Tacko Fall opens the season on an NBA roster, Bol Bol and Boban Marjanović could land with new clubs, and Rioux and Mach may push their way into the professional ranks in the next few years. The all-time table changes more slowly, and only a handful of today's players have a realistic path onto it. For most readers, the practical question is a smaller one: how to reach their own full height potential through good nutrition, sleep, and activity during the growing years.
References
1. Wikipedia. List of tallest players in NBA history (accessed October 2026). en.wikipedia.org
2. NBA.com / Associated Press. (2023). Victor Wembanyama officially listed at 7 foot, 3.5 inches tall. nba.com
3. ESPN via 6abc Philadelphia. (2026, September 1). 76ers sign 7-foot-6 center Tacko Fall, others to camp deal. 6abc.com
4. Wikipedia. Tacko Fall (accessed October 2026). en.wikipedia.org
5. Eurobasket. Xu Xin player profile; Basketball-Reference. Xu Xin international stats. eurobasket.com, basketball-reference.com
6. ESPN. (2026, August 8). Boban Marjanovic: Team first in William Jones Cup stint with Strong Group Athletics. espn.com
7. Bleacher Report. (2026). 2026 NBA Draft scouting report for Oklahoma City Thunder's No. 12 pick Aday Mara. bleacherreport.com
8. Basketball.com.au. (2026, September). 'Rocco solid': Why NBL legend loves 'motivated' Zikarsky. basketball.com.au
9. BasketNews. (2026, May 5). Will Edy Tavares return in playoff series? basketnews.com; Wikipedia. Edy Tavares. en.wikipedia.org
10. BasketNews. (2026, August 6). Youssoupha Fall will continue his career in China. basketnews.com
11. The Sporting News via Yahoo Sports. (2026, February 19). Former Suns center signs with Philippine Basketball Association team. sports.yahoo.com
12. UC Irvine Athletics. (2026, April 30). UC Irvine men's basketball signs 7-9 Olivier Rioux. ucirvinesports.com
13. Basketball.com.au. (2026). Meet 7'6 Aussie 17-year-old Jongkuch Mach. basketball.com.au
14. FIBA. (2026). Meet the tallest, shortest, oldest and youngest players at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026. fiba.basketball
15. Wikipedia. List of tallest people, plus player profiles: List of tallest people, Nashnush, Sizonenko, Sun Mingming, Ri Myung-hun
16. VTB United League. World basketball map: Kazakhstan. vtb-league.com
17. The Hoops Geek. The average height of NBA players from 1952 to 2026. thehoopsgeek.com
