CHICAGO -- Tacko Fall is really tall. That's both a rhyme and a fact that needed no validation -- but got some anyway here at the NBA Draft Combine. UCF's dynamic big man measured at a whopping 7-foot-7 (with shoes on), one of only four players who measured at more than 7-feet tall.
Fall, to no one's surprise, was the tallest of all the players voluntarily measured. He also had the longest wingspan among players measured at 8-2.25 -- well ahead of the second-longest wingspan which belongs this year to Oregon standout Bol Bol. Bol came in at 7-2.5, with a 7-7 wingspan.
As for the measurements of the stars, those didn't happen. Zion Williamson, the presumptive No. 1 pick, left before the measuring tape was broken out. Projected top-3 picks Ja Morant and RJ Barrett also have blanks next to their measurements.
Here are some notable measurements and thoughts from the official list that was released by the NBA on Thursday.
1. Brandon Clarke did himself no favors
It's no fault of Brandon Clarke, one of Gonzaga's projected first-rounders, that he didn't measure out well. But his wingspan, which came in at just over 6-foot-8, certainly leaves something to be desired. How he led the NCAA last season in shots blocked speaks to just how good his instincts really are. Can he be as dominant a shot-blocker and rim-runner in the NBA against equally long and athletic players, though? The concern here is that his best traits in the NCAA may be stifled in the NBA.
The good news, though, is that what Clarke can control, he controlled well. His max vertical leap, standing vertical and lane agility all rated out at either No. 1 or No. 2 among players at his position who tested out.
2. Tacko Fall is insanely gifted
Yes, this has already been mentioned, but... holy cow! Tacko Fall is seriously 7-foot-7 with shoes on. Can we just think about how insane that is? As ESPN's Jonathan Givony notes here, his measurements basically broke the system.
UCF's Tacko Fall official measurements at the NBA Combine: 7'5 1/4 without shoes, 7'7 with shoes, 289 pounds, 8'2 1/4 wingspan, 10'2 1/2 standing reach, 6.8% body fat. Tacko just broke every figure in our database for height, wingspan and reach, dating back to the 80s. 😳😲 pic.twitter.com/xNNwRuKZcK
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 15, 2019
Can Fall be a dominant big man in the NBA despite not being a dominant big man in the NCAA? Probably not. But interest in Fall has been piqued among scouts in Chicago and what he could potentially be. Measuring out well and showing up in shape has boosted his stock.
3. Shortest players could still get drafted
The shortest players who were measured this year are Tremont Waters (5-10.75 with shoes), Jared Harper (5-11), Carsen Edwards 6-0.25) and Shamorie Ponds (6-0.5).
It's possible all four wind up getting drafted.
Waters is a veteran and reliable point guard from LSU and Harper, from Auburn, fits that same billing. Harper improved his stock with a strong showing in the G League Showcase earlier this week, while Edwards and Ponds are fringe first-rounders entering the week. By week's end, don't be surprised if they are considered top-60 players in this draft. At the point guard position, height be damned, experience can still be a deciding factor in future success.
Measurements from NBA Draft Combine
| Player | Pos. | Body fat | Height w/o shoes | Height w/shoes | Weight | Wingspan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickeil Alexander-Walker | SG | 5.90% | 6-4.25 | 6-5.5 | 203.8 | 6-9.5 |
| RJ Barrett | SF | - | - | - | - | - |
| Charles Bassey | C | 8.50% | 6-8.75 | 6-10 | 239 | 7-3.5 |
| Darius Bazley | PF | 3.60% | 6-7.75 | 6-9 | 208.4 | 7-0 |
| Bol Bol | C | 7.10% | 7-0.75 | 7-2.5 | 208 | 7-7 |
| Jordan Bone | SG | 5.00% | 6-1.5 | 6-2.75 | 179 | 6-3.25 |
| Brian Bowen II | SF | 6.50% | 6-6.25 | 6-7.5 | 200 | 6-10 |
| Ky Bowman | PG | 4.90% | 6-1 | 6-2.25 | 181.2 | 6-7 |
| Ignas Brazdeikis | SF | 6.00% | 6-5.75 | 6-7.25 | 220.8 | 6-9.25 |
| Oshea Brissett | SF-PF | 2.90% | 6-7 | 6-8 | 203.2 | 7-0 |
| Moses Brown | C | 7.80% | 7-1.25 | 7-2.5 | 237.2 | 7-4.75 |
| Brandon Clarke | SF | 4.90% | 6-7.25 | 6-8.25 | 207.2 | 6-8.25 |
| Nicolas Claxton | C | 4.50% | 6-10 | 6-11.75 | 216.6 | 7-2.5 |
| Tyler Cook | PF | 6.10% | 6-7.25 | 6-8.75 | 245.4 | 7-0.5 |
| Jarrett Culver | SG | 5.00% | 6-5.25 | 6-6.75 | 194.2 | 6-9.5 |
| Terence Davis | SF-PF | 4.10% | 6-3 | 6-4.5 | 192.4 | 6-8.75 |
| Luguentz Dort | PG | 5.00% | 6-2.75 | 6-4.25 | 222.2 | 6-8.5 |
| Devon Dotson | PG | 5.90% | 6-0 | 6-2 | 178.6 | 6-3.25 |
| Carsen Edwards | PG | 5.50% | 5-10.75 | 6-0.25 | 199.4 | 6-6 |
| Tacko Fall | C | 6.80% | 7-5.25 | 7-7 | 288.8 | 8-2.25 |
| Bruno Fernando | C | 5.40% | 6-8.75 | 6-10.25 | 237 | 7-3.25 |
| Daniel Gafford | PF | 5.90% | 6-9.25 | 6-10.5 | 237.6 | 7-2.25 |
| Darius Garland | PG | - | - | - | - | - |
| Quentin Grimes | SG | 8.40% | 6-4 | 6-5.25 | 209.6 | 6-7.75 |
| Kyle Guy | SG | 5.70% | 6-0.75 | 6-2.25 | 167.8 | 6-4.5 |
| Jaylen Hands | PG | 5.10% | 6-1.5 | 6-3 | 180.4 | 6-5.5 |
| Jared Harper | PG | 3.90% | 5-9.75 | 5-11 | 169.2 | 6-5.5 |
| Jaxson Hayes | PF | 5.00% | 6-10.25 | 6-11.5 | 218.6 | 7-3.5 |
| Dewan Hernandez | C | 6.10% | 6-9 | 6-10.25 | 232.8 | 7-1.75 |
| Tyler Herro | SG | 7.10% | 6-4.5 | 6-6 | 192.4 | 6-3.25 |
| Jalen Hoard | PF | 6.70% | 6-7.25 | 6-9 | 212.6 | 7-0.75 |
| Talen Horton-Tucker | SG | 8.40% | 6-2.5 | 6-4 | 235.4 | 7-1.25 |
| De'Andre Hunter | - | - | - | - | - | |
| DaQuan Jefferies | SF-PF | 3.90% | 6-4 | 6-5 | 215.6 | 6-11.25 |
| Ty Jerome | PG | 6.50% | 6-4.25 | 6-5.5 | 194.4 | 6-4 |
| Cameron Johnson | SG | 5.80% | 6-7 | 6-8.5 | 205.2 | 6-10 |
| Keldon Johnson | SG | 5.60% | 6-4.75 | 6-6 | 216.4 | 6-9.25 |
| Mfiondu Kabengele | PF | 5.10% | 6-8.75 | 6-10.25 | 256.2 | 7-3 |
| Louis King | SF | 4.80% | 6-6.75 | 6-8 | 195.2 | 7-0.25 |
| Romeo Langford | SG | -% | 6-4.5 | 6-6 | - | 6-11 |
| Dedric Lawson | PF | 8.90% | 6-7 | 6-8.5 | 233 | 7-2.25 |
| Jalen Lecque | PG | 4.00% | 6-2.5 | 6-4.25 | 185.2 | 6-8.5 |
| Nassir Little | SF | 5.90% | 6-4.5 | 6-6 | 224.2 | 7-1.25 |
| Terance Mann | SG-SF | 4.00% | 6-4.75 | 6-6.5 | 204.6 | 6-7.75 |
| Cody Martin | PG-SG | 5.00% | 6-4.75 | 6-5.5 | 192.2 | 6-10.25 |
| Charles Matthews | SG | 3.80% | 6-5 | 6-6.25 | 194.8 | 6-9.5 |
| Jalen McDaniels | SF | 5.70% | 6-8.25 | 6-9.75 | 191.6 | 7-0.25 |
| Ja Morant | PG | - | - | - | - | - |
| Zach Norvell Jr. | SG | 7.50% | 6-4.5 | 6-5.5 | 206.4 | 6-6 |
| Jaylen Nowell | SG | 6.10% | 6-3.25 | 6-4.25 | 202.4 | 6-7.25 |
| Jordan Nwora | PF | 7.80% | 6-5.75 | 6-7.5 | 220 | 6-10.5 |
| Chuma Okeke | - | - | - | - | - | |
| KZ Okpala | SF | 4.60% | 6-7.25 | 6-9.5 | 209.6 | 7-1.75 |
| Miye Oni | SG | 4.90% | 6-4.25 | 6-5.75 | 205.6 | 6-10.75 |
| Eric Paschall | SF | 6.30% | 6-6 | 6-7.25 | 254.4 | 6-11.75 |
| Reggie Perry | SF-PF | 6.70% | 6-8 | 6-9.25 | 250.8 | 7-0.5 |
| Shamorie Ponds | PG | 9.80% | 5-11.5 | 6-0.5 | 180 | 6-3.5 |
| Jordan Poole | SG | 7.50% | 6-3.5 | 6-5.5 | 190.8 | 6-6.75 |
| Jontay Porter | PF | 8.50% | 6-9.75 | 6-11 | 210.4 | 7-0 |
| Kevin Porter Jr. | SG | 5.10% | 6-4 | 6-5.5 | 212.6 | 6-9 |
| Neemias Queta | C | 6.30% | 6-10.75 | 7-0.25 | 225.8 | 7-4.25 |
| Cameron Reddish | SF | 4.70% | 6-6.5 | 6-8 | 207.8 | 7-0.5 |
| Naz Reid | PF | 14.00% | 6-8.75 | 6-9.5 | 255.8 | 7-3.25 |
| Isaiah Roby | PF | 3.90% | 6-7.25 | 6-8.5 | 214 | 7-1 |
| Luka Samanic | PF | 5.60% | 6-9.5 | 6-11 | 227.2 | 6-10.5 |
| Admiral Schofield | SF | 6.80% | 6-4 | 6-5.25 | 240.6 | 6-9.75 |
| Marial Shayok | SF-PF | 4.70% | 6-4.5 | 6-5.5 | 196.8 | 7-0.25 |
| Simisola Shittu | PF | 6.20% | 6-8.5 | 6-9.5 | 227.2 | 7-1.25 |
| Killian Tillie | - | - | - | - | - | |
| P.J. Washington | PF | 8.60% | 6-6.5 | 6-8 | 230.4 | 7-2.25 |
| Tremont Waters | PG | 6.60% | 5-9.5 | 5-10.75 | 172.4 | 6-2.25 |
| Quinndary Weatherspoon | SG | 6.10% | 6-3 | 6-4.25 | 206.6 | 6-9 |
| Coby White | PG | 4.30% | 6-3.5 | 6-4.75 | 191.4 | 6-5 |
| Kris Wilkes | SF | 4.90% | 6-6.25 | 6-7.75 | 208.8 | 6-10.75 |
| Grant Williams | PF | 5.40% | 6-5.75 | 6-7.5 | 240.2 | 6-9.75 |
| Zion Williamson | PF | - | - | - | - | - |
| Dylan Windler | SF | 4.60% | 6-6.25 | 6-7.5 | 195.8 | 6-10 |
