WASHINGTON — At 7-feet-3 inches tall, Kristaps Porziņģis is the tallest player on the Washington Wizards roster. However, his life off the court is much different than a person with average height.
Porziņģis says he hits his head on objects at least three times weekly and has to sleep diagonally during away games in hotel beds. The average doorway is 6 feet 8 inches high. For the average human being, this is not a problem.
One of the hardest things for Porziņģis is to travel in cars and planes. "Getting in a regular car is not fun," said Porziņģis. "Back tightness and hamstring tightness, everything you can imagine happens to me a lot of the team."
Porziņģis was given the name "Unicorn" by Prince George's County native and NBA star Kevin Durant because of his ability to shoot threes and make plays off the dribble, all while doing big man things like blocking shots and scoring down low in the paint.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 2800 people in the world are 7 feet tall or taller. Considering that the world population is approximately 7.4 billion people, this means that the percentage of 7 footers is 0.000038%. This incredibly small percentage of people explains why they are extremely sought after in the NBA. "Shopping for clothes in stores is impossible but online is possible," said Porziņģis. "It's not the easiest job. There are a lot of things I can't wear. I figure out the brands that fit me."
The two tallest players to ever play in the NBA also played for Washington's NBA team. Gheorghe Muresan and Manute Bol were both 7 feet 7 inches tall. Porzingis is actually only the 5th tallest player to ever play in Washington. Peter John Ramos was 7 feet 3.5 inches tall and Ralph Sampson was 7 feet 4 inches tall.
If there's one positive in being 7 feet tall, no need for a ladder. "I was 10 years old the last time I needed to use a ladder. Changing a light bulb is nothing for me" said Porziņģis.