Issue date: 1/24/07 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Jennalee Ziegler

It has been said that basketball is a sport for tall people. The average height of an NBA player is 6'7" while the average height of WNBA players is 5'11", both of which are way over the average height for their respected sex.

But that isn't the case on either of Wright State's basketball teams.

Although both teams are above the national average of height, neither team has any players who simply tower over all of their opponents. Jordan Pleiman is the tallest for the men standing at 6'8" while Erica Richardson is 6'1" on the women's team.

Yet, despite the fact that everyone thinks it's a tall person's sports, it is some of the shorter players on the team who have had the biggest impacts this season.

DaShaun Wood stands at 5'11" but is the leading scorer this season and can easily be considered for Horizon League player of the year. Meanwhile, on the women's side, freshman Kanisha Ward has made some noise even though she is only 5'6".
The Raiders have made it clear that height isn't everything in the game of basketball.

"I really do feel like I'm the biggest one out there because it's not like I use my height to my disadvantage," said Ward. "I'm quick and if I have my feet set I can jump as high as anyone else can."

It's only fitting that these athletes grew up idolizing players who were short in the NBA too. Wood said he watched Allen Iverson, a 6'0" guard who now plays with the Denver Nuggets. Iverson is known for driving to the hole and shooting over defenders very similarly to the way Wood plays.

"One thing is to just get the ball higher than (his opponent) can jump and that's been working for me since day one," said Wood.

Of course there are still people out there who like to pick on the short players in a playful way. Some of the practice players will sing the song "I wish I was a little bit taller" whenever Ward is nearby in practice. She always seems to have a good comeback for them though because she says "sometimes you just got to let your game do the talking."
She's talked back an awful lot this season for only being a freshman.

The final thing that both players said is that it's important not to let your physical size decide the way your going to play, let the size of your heart make that decision. If that part of a player isn't big it doesn't matter how tall you are, your not going to make it.

"You can be short and small but if you got a big heart and determination to play basketball then you can do it," said Wood.

"It's all about the heart."

It's easy to see that both these players definitely have the biggest heart when they're out on the court.

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