Robinson hopes to measure up in a big man's world

Shawn Bradley, the gentlest of NBA giants, plans to retire soon, but when the 7-foot-6 center leaves, the league's devotion to the theory that bigger is better will remain.

His 12-year career, unspectacular and filled with being on the receiving end of several dunks, did nothing to disrupt a fascination with height that has included notable busts such as Manute Bol, Gheorghe Muresan and Pavel Podkolzin.

"The NBA has shown time and time again that it will take chances on a big men, almost any big man," said former NBA scout and Sonics assistant Tom Newell, whose father Pete began the legendary big man's camp in Hawaii. "That type of thinking doesn't go away.

"Little guys get overlooked, which is sad because most times they've got more heart and desire than anybody else. Is it a big man's game? Yes, it sure is. But there's room for the little guys."

NBA general managers are suckers for big men. Only two teams, New Orleans and Philadelphia, did not have a 7-foot player on their roster last season, and nearly half had at least two. The Los Angeles Clippers had four.

Among the 44 7-footers in the league, more than two-thirds were drafted in the first round while just half of the eight 6-feet-and-under players were drafted.

That trend works against Nate Robinson, the 5-9 do-everything dynamo who left Washington with a year of eligibility remaining and made himself eligible for Tuesday's draft.

His stock soared a year ago when Indiana general manager Larry Bird called him the best player at the pre-draft camp and leveled out last season when he earned All-Pac-10 honors after averaging 16.5 points and 4.5 assists for the Huskies.

During recent workouts for NBA teams, Robinson needed to convince front-office executives that in addition to an amazing 42-inch vertical leap that allows him to soar over bigger defenders for dunks and tip jams, he can also handle point-guard duties and shoot the NBA three-pointer.

"I got a sense of what they need to see from me and the questions they're asking," said Robinson, when he announced his decision to leave the Huskies. "They're asking, where do I fit in, at the 1 [point guard] or the 2 [shooting guard]. And like I've said all along, I'm a basketball player.

"Put me on the floor and I'll fit in. So before the draft, that's what I intend to show them. I'm a basketball player, pure and simple."

But in reality, he will never be enough to show them enough. Jameer Nelson, the 2003-04 collegiate player of the year at St. Joseph's, told him that last year. They spoke before Denver drafted Nelson with the 20th pick in last year's draft and traded him to Orlando.

Nelson gave Robinson a version of the speech he received from T.J. Ford, the former Texas All-American taken at No. 8 by Milwaukee in the '03 draft. And Ford talked to Earl Boykins, Denver's 5-5 backup guard who received advice from Avery Johnson, the Dallas Mavericks coach and a former diminutive guard.

"What I found out early on is, it's not about you, it's about them," Boykins said. "Of course you're going to believe in yourself. It's getting the right people to believe in you. Your teammates, coaches and general managers.

"What I tell guys like me trying to get in [the NBA] is that you don't necessarily have to outwork everybody or work harder or spend 20 hours in a gym, but you have to be better than everybody else. Because if it's close, if it's a tie, they're going with the bigger guy."

Listen to Boykins and you'll realize that a chip is sitting on his thin shoulders, but you just don't see it. It's as big as he is and it grows each time he steps into an NBA arena and receives that look from unsuspecting spectators and opponents.

It's a look that says this guy, this 5-5, 133-pound peewee, doesn't seriously believe he belongs on the same court with the world's best basketball players.

It has been seven years since Boykins broke into the league. He has spent time with six teams, played with six dozen teammates and about 10 coaches. During the past two seasons, Boykins has logged time in every regular-season game for Denver.

And still, he gets the look that he doesn't belong.

"That part, probably won't ever change and that doesn't bother me," Boykins said. "That whole you can't judge a book by it's cover, no matter how many times you say it, people are still going to do it.

"There's been all types of guards in the NBA. All sizes and colors. ... Big guards get the attention and stick out because the little guys are supposed to be point guards."

But all that changed when Oscar Robertson and Earvin "Magic" Johnson entered the league, revolutionized the point-guard position and made it difficult for little men to find work.

At 6-5, Robertson was taller than any contemporary and averaged a triple-double during his rookie season with the Cincinnati Royals in 1961-62. Johnson arrived in 1979, and suddenly every team was looking for a 6-9 guard to run the offense.

"You had to match up against Magic, and putting a short guy on him wasn't going to do it," Sonics coach Nate McMillan said. "He would take advantage of shorter players, so you had teams putting their 2-guards and forwards on Magic. ... It was like, if you didn't have a big guard, then you were in trouble."

Still, for every Magic Johnson there was a Calvin Murphy, the former Houston Rocket and Hall of Famer considered the best player under 6 feet. He often said the NBA's worst prejudice isn't skin color, but size.

"He was a tough, tough matchup," McMillan said. "Like Magic, but in reverse. Like Shaq [O'Neal], but the other way around. His size worked for him."

Murphy, who scored a career-high 57 points, opened the door for Michael Adams (5-10) and Dana Barros (5-11). They are the only other players under 6 feet to eclipse the 50-point barrier.

Their success and longevity made it a little easier for Avery Johnson (5-10), Tyrone "Mugsy" Bogues (5-3), Anthony "Spud" Webb (5-6) and Damon Stoudamire (5-10) to get into the NBA.

"I've always felt that getting in is the toughest part, but staying in, if you've got talent, well that's tough too, but it's easier in a way," said Avery Johnson, undrafted despite leading the NCAA in assists as a junior and senior at Southern University.

"You look at the little men in this league, and the majority of them have had long careers," he said. "Almost all of them, I'd say. They might have had to jump around to a few teams, but they've been able to stick."

Percy Allen: 206-464-2278 or pallen@seattletimes.com

Little big men
Nate Robinson, who stands 5 feet 9 on his tallest day, hopes to make it in the big-man's world of the NBA. Denver's Earl Boykins is the league's shortest player, at 5-5. Boykins and a handful of former pint-sized NBA stars give Robinson someone to look up to, so to speak.
Player	Ht.	Years played	Drafted
Calvin Murphy	5-9	1970-83	San Diego, 2nd round (18th overall)
• Murphy is a Hall of Famer, one of the best free-throw shooters in history (.892).
Charlie Criss	5-8	1977-85	Not drafted
• Took him seven years to make NBA; best season was as a 28-year-old rookie.
Spud Webb	5-6	1985-98	Detroit Pistons, 4th round (87th overall)
• Like Robinson, a great leaper, Webb won the NBA Slam Dunk title in 1986.
Earl Boykins	5-5	1999-present	Not drafted
• Has found a home with Nuggets, scoring in double figures past two seasons.
Muggsy Bogues	5-3	1987-2001	Washington Bullets, 1st round (12th overall)
• Highest draft pick among prominent short guys, lasted 14 seasons.
Research: Bill Reader, assistant sports editor

Six feet under
Current NBA players who are under 6 feet tall:
Player	Team	Ht.
Chucky Atkins	L.A. Lakers	5-11
Travis Best	New Jersey	5-11
Speedy Claxton	New Orleans	5-11
T.J. Ford	Milwaukee	5-11
Andre Barrett	Orlando	5-10
Brevin Knight	Charlotte	5-10
Damon Stoudamire	Portland	5-10
Earl Boykins	Denver	5-5
Research: Percy Allen, NBA reporter