Okay, so everyone keeps talking about Bol Bol’s wingspan, right? Heard the numbers, seen the stats. Crazy long. But numbers are just numbers until you actually see it in action.
I remember catching a game, I think it was Phoenix he was playing for then. He checks in, and on TV, yeah, he looks tall and lanky. But then there’s this one play, a loose ball or a rebound, I don’t recall exactly. He just sort of… unfurled his arms. Didn’t even seem to jump high, just reached out. It looked like his fingertips were in another zip code. Seriously.
Seeing is Believing
It’s one thing to read ‘7-foot-8 wingspan’. It’s another thing entirely to watch him basically swallow up space on the court without moving his feet much. Made me think, you know?
Reminded me of this time I was trying to paint the high part of the stairwell in my old house. I got the longest roller extension pole I could find at the hardware store. Stood on a ladder, stretched as far as I could. Still couldn’t quite reach that one annoying spot near the ceiling corner. Felt totally useless.
- Tried a different angle.
- Nearly fell off the ladder.
- Considered building some dodgy scaffolding.
Ended up just leaving that spot. It bothered me for years. Seeing Bol Bol just casually reach across what feels like half the court for a block or a tip… yeah, it made me think about that stupid spot on the wall again. Some people just have that built-in reach, that advantage. It’s wild to witness, makes you realize the difference between normal human proportions and these genetic lottery winners.
It’s just different when you see that kind of length applied in real-time. Forget the stats for a minute, just watching the dude operate is something else. Makes you appreciate the sheer physical uniqueness you see in pro sports sometimes.
