Nationality Romanian Listed weight 315 lb (143 kg) Role Basketball player Weight 143 kg Movies My Giant | Listed height 7 ft 7 in (2.31 m) Pro career 1991–2006 Name Gheorghe Muresan Height 2.31 m Spouse Liliana Muresan (m. 1994) | |
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NBA draft 1993 / Round: 2 / Pick: 30th overall Children Gheorghe Muresan Jr., Victor Muresan Similar People Manute Bol, Shawn Bradley, Sun Mingming, Muggsy Bogues, Yao Ming | ||
Gheorghe muresan 27pts 11rebs 4blks vs bulls 1996
Gheorghe Dumitru Mureșan ([ˈɡe̯orɡe mureˈʃan]; born February 14, 1971), also known as "Ghiţă" ([ˈɡit͡sə]), is a Romanian retired professional basketball player. At 7 feet 7 inches (2.31 m), he is one of the two tallest players in NBA history, along with Sudanese player Manute Bol. He is the tallest man in Romania and tallest living person in the European Union.
Contents
- Gheorghe muresan 27pts 11rebs 4blks vs bulls 1996
- Gheorghe Muresan on Late Night with David Letterman
- Basketball career
- Other work
- References
Gheorghe Muresan on Late Night with David Letterman
Basketball career
Mureșan was born in Tritenii de Jos, Cluj County, and played competitive basketball at Cluj University. He played professionally in the French league with Pau-Orthez during the 1992–93 season and was an instant hit with fans. He was selected by the NBA franchise Washington Bullets in the 1993 NBA draft. He played in the NBA from 1993 to 2000 showing signs of a promising career that was derailed by injuries. His best season came in the 1995–1996 campaign, when he averaged 14.5 points per game.
Mureșan was named the NBA's Most Improved Player for the 1995–96 season after averaging 14.5 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.26 blocks per game while making a league-leading 58.4 percent of his field goals. He led in field goal percentage again the following season, with a 60.4% average. Overall, he holds career averages of 9.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 1.48 blocks per game and a .573 field goal percentage. He joined the New Jersey Nets for the final 31 games of his career. After ending his NBA career, Mureșan had another stint in the French league before returning to the United States with his family. He normally wore number 77, in reference to his height.
On March 11, 2007, Mureșan played a game for the Maryland Nighthawks as part of the tallest lineup in the history of basketball. This was the only basketball game Mureșan ever played where he was not the tallest person on the court, as Sun Mingming is 7'9" (2.36 m).
Other work
In 2004, Gheorghe Mureşan founded Giant Basketball Academy (GBA), a program dedicated to teaching the proper fundamentals of basketball to boys and girls of all ages.
Mureşan is also part of the Washington Wizards marketing and public relations team, serving as an "ambassador" for the team.
Outside basketball, Mureșan has dabbled in acting, playing the title character in 1998 feature film My Giant starring comedian Billy Crystal. He appeared as a ventriloquist in the music video for Eminem's breakthrough single "My Name Is." He has appeared in commercials for Snickers candy bars, and sports television network ESPN. Most recently, Mureșan co-authored two young adult fitness and health books: The Boy's Fitness Guide and The Girl's Fitness Guide.
Together with his wife Liliane and sons George and Victor, Mureșan had been a resident of Franklin Lakes, New Jersey. but currently resides in suburban Washington, D.C. His oldest son, George, is currently playing for the Georgetown Hoyas as a walk-on player as of the upcoming 2016–17 season.
In 2006, he appeared at #28 on the Romanian Television's list of 100 Greatest Romanians of all-time, as the 3rd highest ranked athlete/sportsman on the list (Athlete Nadia Comăneci and footballer Gheorghe Hagi were placed 9th and 13th, respectively).
In 2013 Gheorghe participated in the first annual 3v3 UMTTR (You Matter) Basketball Tournament to increase awareness, prevention and research of teen suicide, the leading cause of death among adults and children between the ages of 15 and 24. For more information see www.UMTTR.org.