Earl Boykins

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Earl Boykins
Position	Point guard
Height	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Weight	133 lb (60 kg)
Team	Denver Nuggets
Nationality	United States
Born	June 2, 1976 Cleveland, Ohio
College	Eastern Michigan
Draft	Not drafted
Pro career	1999 – present
Former teams	New Jersey Nets (1999) Cleveland Cavaliers (1999, 2000) Orlando Magic (1999) Los Angeles Clippers (2001–2002) Golden State Warriors (2002–2003) Denver Nuggets (2003– )

Earl Antoine Boykins (born June 2, 1976 in Cleveland Ohio) is an American professional basketball player currently with the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association.

He played collegiately at Eastern Michigan University from 1995 to 1998. He earned All-Mid-American Conference first team honors in his junior and senior year. He holds the career record for assists at his alma mater.

Boykins has played in the NBA with the Cleveland Cavaliers, New Jersey Nets, Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State Warriors, as well as Denver Nuggets. He also spent two years in the CBA, where he played for the Rockford Lightning. At 5'5" (1.65 m), Boykins is the shortest active NBA player and the second shortest player in NBA history behind Muggsy Bogues, who was 5'3" (1.60 m). Earl Boykins weighs only 133 pounds (60 kg) but according to various sources he can bench press up to 315 pounds (143 kg).[1]

Despite his lack of height, Boykins finally earned a guaranteed contract after bouncing around with various teams around the league and getting few playing minutes, often coming off the bench to inject energy into his team's offense. He is one of the quickest guards in the league, and he has even quicker shooting trigger, often taking shots in clutch last-second situations, and making them under extreme pressure. On January 18, 2005, Boykins set an NBA record for scoring in overtime when he tallied 15 points.

Boykins' NBA career has solidified in recent years in part due to the recent change in rules allowing zone defense, as many teams earlier feared playing Boykins (since he was so small) should opponents try to post him up. But with zone defense, very few situations arise where Boykins is isolated alone defending a taller player in the paint area. And since other taller point guards in the league rarely have post-up moves in their offensive repertoire, the proof that at 5'5" (1.65 m) Boykins is a defensive liability has not been evident.

[edit] Trivia

Boykins is married with one son, Earl, Jr.
When he played for Golden State, the Arena would play to his dismay the song "It's a Small World" from the speakers upon his entering the game.[2]
Boykins was second in the NCAA in scoring average his senior year at Eastern Michigan (25.7 points per game)
His ability to score off the bench along with his low-to-the-floor stature gained him the moniker "the Double-Digit Midget".
Boykins appeared in the Midway games title NBA Ballers Phenom.
Boykins competed twice in NBA All-Star Weekend; he finished third in 2003-04 and second in 2004-05 Skills Challenge.