Thread: 7' 7" 360 lbs Center with bigger feet than Shaq's

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/09/sports/ncaabasketball/09asheville.html?ref=ncaabasketball

7 Feet 7 and 360 Pounds, With Bigger Feet Than Shaq’s
By ANNA KATHERINE CLEMMONS

ASHEVILLE, N.C. � The University of North Carolina-Asheville men’s basketball team has perhaps the most effective inbounds play in the country: the Bulldogs’ point guard lofts the ball high toward the basket, and center Kenny George either tips it in or dunks it, without leaving his feet, as his opponents leap in vain.

Some things come easily on the basketball court for George, the tallest player in the country, at 7 feet 7 inches and 360 pounds. Entering the Bulldogs’ game Wednesday night against top-ranked North Carolina, George leads the nation in blocked shots per game (5.4), and he has become a fan favorite here in his junior year. Near the end of a recent overtime victory against Buffalo, George received a standing ovation for his 21-point, 10-rebound, 6-block performance.

“We tried not to go under the basket when he’s in, because it’s useless,� Buffalo Coach Reggie Witherspoon said.

A week later, on Saturday night, George’s dunk with 26.8 seconds left gave Asheville (11-3) the lead for good in a 61-58 victory at South Carolina.

But as with many of the extremely tall basketball players before him � including Gheorghe Muresan, Manute Bol and Shawn Bradley � such size brings serious drawbacks. George’s joints are under considerable stress, and everything from buying shoes to going out with his friends can be difficult.

He is too tall to fit into a driver’s seat, so he does not have a driver’s license and must ask friends for rides. When the semester ends, his father drives 650 miles from Chicago, his hometown, to Asheville so George does not have to squeeze into an airplane seat.

“I don’t hate it, but there are times I wish that I weren’t so tall,� George said.

George grew up on the North Side of Chicago. His parents separated when he was 2 years old, and his father, Ken Sr., received primary custody of his only son. Although George was tall from an early age, he did not become interested in basketball until middle school.

“Basketball wasn’t what I was trying to bring him up to do, it just went in that direction,� Ken Sr. said.

George was on the varsity squad by his sophomore year at the Latin School of Chicago. “He was 6-11, huge for a kid that age, but even then he had exceptionally good control of his body,� said Latin’s coach, Dave VanderMeulen.

George’s body kept growing. By his senior year, his feet had grown beyond size 23, the largest athletic shoe made. In search of a size 25, VanderMeulen appealed to college and N.B.A. teams. Weeks later, Shaquille O’Neal sent several pairs of his size 22’s to Chicago. VanderMeulen shipped them to a New York City shoemaker who cut off the soles and toes and reshaped them into 25’s.

Asheville has a contract with Nike, which makes 12 pairs of size-26 shoes for George. They are the only shoes he wears.

“I suspect his shoe will go into the Hall of Fame because of its size,� said Asheville’s coach, Eddie Biedenbach. George’s wingspan, fingertip to fingertip, is 101 ½ inches, and with shoes on he stands 7-9.

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His NBA draft profile

http://www.nbadraft.net/admincp/profiles/kennygeorge.html

Watching him block those two shots were really funny. He looked huge out there.

Can he move any faster than that?

"davike" wrote:

Watching him block those two shots were really funny. He looked huge out there.

Can he move any faster than that?

Not really he is very slow from what
have seen. If nothing else he probably has a futre in the WWE

Or, in Porn.... :-

Yeah, he'll never make it, he just doesn't have that blazing speed like shaq :

I have watched this dude play numerous times and I don't think he has a shot in the NBA. He has no stamina, and only plays 20 minutes a game in college. Im sure he will get a shot for some team but he won't pan out.

Mabye he'll do good, but history has shown us just because someone is a big guy doesn't mean he'll be a dominate center.
Just look at how many dominate Centers there has been since Shaq came into the league, not a lot.

Just getting around and doing the every day things in life would suck if you were that big.

Basketball is a sport where you need athleticism at every position, not just size.
Why do you think he plays for NC-Asheville?

His footwork and agility looks awful... does anyone know his growth history.. did he shoot up recently and still adjusting the the spurt or is he just naturally slow and clumsy in movement?

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