NBA players are some of the tallest people on the planet, which means they have large feet. Big men in particular have especially sizable footwear. The taller you go, the bigger the shoe size. However, that’s not always true.
In this article, I will look at Giannis Atentokoumpo’s foot size in relation to his other dimensions. Doing so will analyze how important that dimension is, and reveal where the superstar stacks up to his regular competition.
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Large in Most Ways
Giannis is one of the largest players in the league by every relevant metric. He’s extremely tall, has an incredible wingspan, and weighs nearly 250 pounds. However, as surprising as it may be, he doesn’t quite have the same size when it comes to his shoes.
Giannis’ feet are not small by any metric, but they aren’t terribly big compared to other NBA players either. The Bucks center wears a size US 16 (18 UK, 46 Europe). That’s much, much larger than the average person, but it’s actually quite smaller than many other bigs across the league.
Still, Giannis’ feet play an important role in his game. He’s a larger athlete who needs to move quickly around the court. Having a solid base allows him to do that and give him the proper balance he needs to both defend and score. Not only that, but they keep him healthy too.
The Middle Ground
Giannis’ feet are not particularly impressive when compared to other bigs around the league, but that may be a blessing in disguise. That’s because, while big men tend to have big feet, those with extremely large ones are more injury prone due to the greater surface area.
A lot of forwards and centers tend to have foot, ankle, and toe issues. That goes double for ones who spend most of their time jumping up for large blocks or high-flying dunks. Giannis is someone who does both, but he’s never been seriously injured or had to sit out a lot.
As his feet are large enough to support his frame, but not so large that they increase his injury risk, he can play the game of basketball in a more fearless way. He can still get injured, but his middle ground is much better than being too big or too small.
Stacking Up
Giannis is one of the biggest centers in the NBA, but his foot size doesn’t stand out as much. Many other famous big men, including Shaq, Dwight Howard, Yao Ming, and DeAndre Jordan, wear size eighteen. Some smaller players have Giannis’ foot size (or bigger) as well.
Lebron, who’s a few inches shorter, also wears a size 16. Andre Iguodala stands five inches shorter than Giannis and wears a size 17. Some guards, like Russel Westbrook, only wear one shoe size smaller than the towering big.
That shows that his feet are not unusually small, but they are definitely not incredibly large either. He sits in a middle ground that works perfectly with his body.
Final Words
Shoe size rarely informs or suggests skill. That’s not true in Giannis’ case. The big man gets most of his play style and advantage from his size. His shoes reflect just how big he is, and they give him a unique edge that supports his style of play.
The big man is not as skilled as he is because his feet are large. Rather, his foot size is a result of his gifted genetics. It’s interesting to see how he stacks up against other players, but at the end of the day his other dimensions are much more important when evaluating his overall talent.
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