The average NBA player weighs around 216 lbs
But not all positions are distributed equally in terms of weight; for example, point guards are the lightest of all positions with an average weight of 190 lbs while Centers are the heaviest with an average weight of 250 lbs But recent studies have shown that over the past few seasons, the BMI of NBA players has been slowly decreasing In comparison, only 38% of NBA players today are considered overweight All this is due to the competitive factor, the sport now requires players to be more agile and lighter to adapt to the growing competition To find out who the exceptions are, here are the top 10 heaviest NBA players:
Priest Lauderdale is an American Bulgarian basketball athlete who weighs over 325 lb with a height of 7’4” and played for the Atlanta Hawks in the 1996 NBA Draft He played a short time in the NBA league from 1996 to 1998
After that, he played for the Bulgarian National basketball team from 2002 to 2005
Garth McArthur Fitzgerald Joseph is a member of the Dominican basketball national team who weighs around 315 pounds and is 7’2″ Joseph played only 4 games in the NBA league in the 2000-01 season Sometimes often was compared to Shaquille O’Neal due to his overweight Although he was one of the NBA’s heaviest players in the season, he played some great games at the international level Named NYCAC Rookie of the Year during the 1994 season -95 and entered the Saint Rose Athletics Hall of Fame in 2017
Robert DeShaun “Tractor” Traylor used to weigh over 300 pounds and was 6 feet 8 inches tall Traylor played in the NBA League for 7 years but did not live up to expectations in the game due to his overweight He debuted in the NBA league in 1998 for the Dallas Mavericks In the 2005 offseason, he underwent surgery and then signed for the New Jersey Nets in the 2005–06 season but failed a physical examination, and the deal was off Robert had many problems during his entire basketball career
Kevin Jerome Duckworth is a center position player in the NBA league
He weighs about 275 lb and is 7 feet tall During the 1994-95 season, this heaviest basketball player weighed 310 lbs Duckworth struggled to keep his weight down for several fights in his career and still had quickness in his body and high caliber strength After his retirement in the year 1997, weighed about 350 pounds which caused him to live unhealthy
During his NBA career, he was named the NBA’s Most Improved Player and a 2-time All-Star
Thomas Thaddeus Hamilton had never played Basketball before the 1995-96 NBA season
During his senior year, he weighed over 330 pounds with a height of 7’2″ He spent most of the time on both the injury and suspension lists When he appeared in his first game in NBA, his weight is more than 360 pounds he has removed from the suspended list He was fit and played for the Boston Celtics in almost 11 games scoring 25 points
Michael Damien Sweetney when he came out of the University after his studies in the year 2003, weighed about 260 pounds In the same year, he entered the NBA League for the New York Knicks Drafted into the NBA League in 2003 and due to his weight issues, did not appear in a single game from 2007 to 2009 In 2008, he weighed over 400 pounds and was probably the heaviest player in NBA history at the time that Despite his weight, fought and fought to play in matches
He became an Assistant coach in 2019 and is currently the head coach of the Girl’s Varsity basketball team
Gursimran “Sim” Bhullar was the first player to play in the NBA league of Indian descent and the 6th tallest player in NBA history
Bhullar has a massive weight of 360 lb
Although he is bigger and looks the same, impresses people with good performances in fights
In 2014, he entered the NBA Draft and eventually went undrafted
Signed for the Sacramento Kings to play in the NBA Summer League
Eddy Anthony Curry Jr weighed more than 350 pounds before he turned 30 years old In 2002, the Chicago Bulls drafted Curry and believed he might have health issues due to his weight His ability to play decreased over time due to his weight At that time he was the heaviest NBA player of all time and some of the coaches advised him to focus only on losing weight His best season in the league with the New York Knicks averaging 195 points and seven rebounds in 81 starts Also, led the league in field goal percentage in the 2002-03 season and was part of the 2012 NBA Championship
2 Shaquille O’Neal
Shaquille Rashaun “Shaq” O’Neal played over 19 years for 6 teams in the NBA League
Weighing 325 pounds with a height of 7 feet known as the tallest player ever
From his childhood, he was tall, and by age 13 he was 6’6″ One of three players to win Finals MVP, NBA MVP, and All-Star game MVP in the same year His records include 14 All-NBA team selections, 15 All-Star game selections, MVP Award, 3 Finals MVP Awards, and 3 NBA All-Defensive team selections O’Neal was named to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2017 and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016
With a height of 6’9″ and an average season weight of up to 300lbs, Oliver Miller’s “The Big O” is the heaviest NBA player ever Miller played in the NBA for the Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Suns, Toronto Raptors, and Sacramento Kings teams for more than 8 years He is known for his problems with his weight, however
He was officially listed at 270 pounds at the start of his career, but he ballooned to 380 pounds in the final years of his NBA career, seriously reducing his mobility and stamina In 2016, was inducted into the Sports Hall of Honor at Arkansas University and was selected as the SEC Basketball legend of the year 2017