Aaron Durley facts for kids

Aaron Durley (born July 21, 1991) is a former Little League World Series baseball player and a former college basketball player for Texas Christian University (TCU). He became well-known for his amazing height and size, especially when he was young.

Early Life and Little League Fame

Aaron Durley was born in Houston, Texas. He first caught the media's attention in 2005, and even more in 2006, because of his incredible height. He played first base, pitched, and batted fifth for the Arabian American team from Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, in the Little League World Series. This team was made up of children whose parents worked for Saudi Aramco, the national oil company of Saudi Arabia. Many of these families were from the United States.

At 6 feet 9 inches tall and weighing 245 pounds, Aaron was the biggest player in Little League World Series history. He was even taller than the average NBA player! He had also played for the Arabian American team in the 2005 Little League World Series. As he grew, his size continued to be remarkable: by 2008, he was 6 feet 10 inches tall and weighed 265 pounds, wearing a size 17 shoe. In August 2009, he reached 6 feet 11 inches tall, weighed 250 pounds, and wore a size 18 shoe.

Aaron even received some of his shoes from famous basketball players like NBA star Yao Ming of the Houston Rockets and Dexter Pittman from the University of Texas. For five years, Aaron lived with his parents in Saudi Arabia. His father, who is 6 feet 8 inches tall, worked for Saudi Aramco and coached Aaron's Dhahran team. His mother, Dana, is just under 6 feet tall. Before living in Saudi Arabia, Aaron lived in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, where his father had moved from Texas.

High School Basketball Career

Aaron attended high school in Houston at St. Thomas High School, living with his grandparents. In November 2008, the Houston Chronicle newspaper called him a "freshman phenom" because he scored 16 points in his very first game with the team. In 2010, he was chosen for the second-team Class 5A All-State Boys Basketball Team by the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools. Aaron later moved to Fort Bend Bush High School in the Houston area, graduating in 2011. He was considered a three-star recruit by sports scouting services like Rivals.com and Scout.com.

College and Beyond

After high school, Aaron first planned to go to Marquette University. However, he later decided to sign with Texas Christian University (TCU). During his first year at TCU, he had to take a break from playing because of a serious knee injury he got during preseason workouts. After nine months of recovery, Aaron unfortunately re-injured his ACL (a major knee ligament) during a layup drill before a game in Canada at the start of the 2013–14 season.

Because of these repeated injuries, Aaron and the TCU coaching staff decided it would be best for his long-term health if he stopped playing basketball. Aaron Durley graduated from TCU in May 2016 with a degree in Sports Broadcasting.

Family Connections

Aaron comes from a family with a strong sports background. His brother, Cameron Durley, also played in the 2008 Little League World Series as a member of the Dhahran, Saudi Arabia team. Cameron was also quite tall for his age, standing 6 feet 2 inches and weighing 228 pounds at 12 years old. Aaron's grandfather, Wilson Graham, played college basketball in Ohio. His father played basketball at East Texas State. His aunt, Margo Graham, was a professional basketball player in the WNBA.