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InterBasket > Player Profiles > Gheorghe Muresan, Romania > talk Wikipedia:  Gheorghe Mureşan (aka. Ghiţă), is a former Romanian professional basketball player. At 7'7" (2.31 m), he is arguably the tallest man to ever play in the NBA, supposedly standing a few millimeters taller than Sudanese player Manute Bol. Like Bol, both his parents are of average size (however unlike Bol his great height is the result of a pituitary disorder). Mureşan was born in the district of Cluj in a poor family, and played college basketball at Cluj University in Romania. He played professionally in the French league with Élan Béarnais Pau-Orthez during the 1992-1993 season and was an instant hit with fans. The NBA took interest in him and he was drafted by the Washington Bullets in the 1993 NBA Draft. He played in the NBA from 1993 to 2000, showing signs of a promising career that was unfortunately derailed by injuries. He 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 whilst making a career-high 58.4 percent of his field goals. 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 retiring from the NBA, Mureşan returned to the French league for three more years before returning to settle in New Jersey with his family. Outside of basketball, Mureşan has dabbled in acting, receiving good reviews playing the title character in 1998 film My Giant with co-star, comedian Billy Crystal. He also played a ventriloquist in Eminem's breakout video, "My Name Is", appeared in commercials for Snickers bars, and has always taken pride in his Romanian identity.	George Mureşan Profile Name: Gheorghe Dumitru Muresan Nickname: Ghitza (pronounced GEET-za) means "Little Gheorghe" Born: 02/14/1971 Status: Retired Origin: Triteni, Romania Height: 7-7/2,31m Weight: 303lbs./135,4kg Schools: Cluj (Romania) '93 Drafted: 1993, Second Round, 30th pick by the Washington Bullets Languages: Romanian and English Website: The Gheorghe Muresan Archive & InterBasket Teams (jersey): Élan Béarnais Pau-Orthez, Washington Bullets (77), New Jersey Nets Ibn Facts: Gheorghe Muresan and Manute Bol, both at 7 foot 7 inches, are the tallest players ever to play in the NBA. Gheorghe did not get his height from his parents. His father is 5'9" and his mother 5'7". A pituitary gland condition caused his unusual growth. Muresan started playing basketball at the age of 14. Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of his heroes. He wears a size 19 shoe. Gheorghe and his wife Liliana became the proud parents of George, their first child, on April 23rd, 1998. Gheorghe resides with his wife Liliana, his son George and their Great Dane "Lucky". From fingertip to fingertip, his wingspan measures 7'10". He played in France in 1992-93 before joining the NBA.
Gheorghe Muresan Links  From our forum: Romania Basketbal Forum   Articles and other resources: Gheorghe Muresan HIghlight Drive (YouTube)