Muggsy Bogues facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Muggsy Bogues

Bogues in 2023
Personal information
Born	(1965-01-09) January 9, 1965 (age 60) Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
High school	Paul Laurence Dunbar (Baltimore, Maryland)
Listed height	5 ft 3 in (1.60 m)
Listed weight	136 lb (62 kg)
Career information
College	Wake Forest (1983–1987)
NBA Draft	1987 / Round: 1 / Pick: 12th overall
Selected by the Washington Bullets
Pro career	1987–2001
Coaching career	2005–2014
Career history
As player:
1987	Rhode Island Gulls
1987–1988	Washington Bullets
1988–1997	Charlotte Hornets
1997–1999	Golden State Warriors
1999–2001	Toronto Raptors
As coach:
2005–2006	Charlotte Sting
2011–2014	United Faith Christian Academy
Career highlights and awards
USBL Rookie of the Year (1987) Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award (1987) First-team All-ACC (1987) No. 14 retired by Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Career statistics
Points	6,858 (7.7 ppg)
Assists	6,726 (7.6 apg)
Steals	1,369 (1.5 spg)
Medals Men's basketball Representing  United States FIBA World Championship Gold 1986 Spain National team

Tyrone Curtis "Muggsy" Bogues (born January 9, 1965) is a famous American basketball player. He is known for being the shortest player ever in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Muggsy was 5 feet 3 inches tall. He played as a point guard for 14 seasons. He played for four different teams. Muggsy is most famous for his ten years with the Charlotte Hornets. He also played for the Washington Bullets, Golden State Warriors, and Toronto Raptors.

Muggsy was great at passing the ball (assists). He was among the top seven players in assists for six years in a row. He was also good at stealing the ball. After playing in the NBA, he coached the Charlotte Sting. This was a team in the WNBA. Muggsy was also a strong defender. He even blocked a shot from Patrick Ewing, who was 7 feet tall!

Early Life of Muggsy Bogues

Muggsy Bogues was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He grew up in the Lafayette Court housing projects. His mother was 4 feet 11 inches tall. His father was 5 feet 5 inches tall. Muggsy had three older brothers and sisters.

Besides basketball, Muggsy was good at wrestling and baseball. When he was a child, he played basketball on playgrounds. He got the nickname "Muggsy" from a small character in a movie series.

Muggsy first went to Southern High School in Baltimore. He wanted to be a dental technician. So, he moved to Dunbar High School. This school offered healthcare classes. At Dunbar, he played for coach Bob Wade. He played with future NBA stars like David Wingate and Reggie Williams. His team, the Dunbar Poets, had amazing seasons. They finished 29–0 in his junior year. In his senior year, they finished 31–0. USA Today ranked them the best team in the country.

Muggsy received many offers to play college basketball. Some schools that wanted him were Virginia and Penn State.

Muggsy's College Basketball Career

Muggsy Bogues playing for Wake Forest in 1985

Muggsy played basketball for four years at Wake Forest University. In his junior year, he averaged 11.3 points per game. He also had 8.4 assists and 3.1 steals per game. In his senior year, he improved even more. He averaged 14.8 points, 9.5 assists, and 2.4 steals per game.

In the 1986–87 season, he led the Atlantic Coast Conference in steals and assists. He also won the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award. As a senior, he was named Wake Forest's most valuable athlete. When he finished college, he was the all-time leader in steals and assists for the ACC.

Wake Forest honored him by retiring his jersey number. In 2001, he was added to the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame. As of 2021, he still holds the school records for steals and assists.

Muggsy also played for the USA national team. He played in the 1986 FIBA World Championship. His team won the gold medal. He played in all ten games. He led the team in both assists and steals.

Muggsy Bogues's Professional Career

Playing for the Rhode Island Gulls (1987)

Muggsy was picked second overall in the 1987 United States Basketball League draft. He was chosen by the Rhode Island Gulls. Fans loved Muggsy in this league. The Gulls had the most fans at their games. In his only season, he averaged 22.2 points and 8.4 assists per game. He played the most minutes in the league. His season ended early due to an ankle injury.

Time with the Washington Bullets (1987–1988)

Muggsy was drafted twelfth in the 1987 NBA draft. He was picked by the Washington Bullets. This draft class had many talented players. Some of them were David Robinson and Scottie Pippen. Muggsy played his first NBA game on November 6, 1987. He started the game and led his team in assists.

When he started, he was 16.5 inches shorter than the average NBA player. In his first year, he played with Manute Bol. Bol was 7 feet 7 inches tall. They were the tallest and shortest players in NBA history at that time. There was a 28-inch difference between them. Bol and Bogues even appeared on three magazine covers together. Muggsy's playing time went down when the coach was changed. But he still led the Bullets in steals and assists.

Years with the Charlotte Hornets (1988–1997)

The next season, the Bullets let Muggsy be available for a special draft. The Charlotte Hornets picked him. Muggsy said he was happy to start fresh in Charlotte.

In Charlotte's first season, the coach kept Muggsy on the bench. He used him for short bursts of energy. But the coach was fired the next season. Muggsy then played much better under new coaches. He played for almost ten seasons with the Hornets. He was a starter for most of that time. He became one of the most recognizable faces of the Hornets. He played alongside stars like Alonzo Mourning and Larry Johnson.

During his time in Charlotte, the Hornets became a strong team. Muggsy led the team to the playoffs three times. He was very popular with basketball fans. From 1989 to 1995, he was always in the top ten for assists in the league. In the 1992–93 season, he had the best assist-to-turnover ratio in the NBA. One of his best seasons was 1993–94. He averaged a double-double, meaning he had double digits in two stats. He also finished second in assists per game. In the 1994–95 season, he scored a career high of 10.8 points per game.

In August 1995, he had surgery on his left knee. This caused him to miss many games. He only played six games in the 1995–96 season. He returned the next season but still missed 17 games. His performance was slightly lower.

Muggsy's relationship with the team changed in 1997. The coach suggested he might need to retire due to his knee. The Hornets then signed another point guard. The team owner told Muggsy he could finish his career there. But then the team asked him to get another knee scan. On November 7, Muggsy was traded to the Golden State Warriors. He was the Hornets' all-time leader in steals and assists. After the trade, he stopped working with the Hornets. His close friend, Dell Curry, was the last original Hornet player left.

Playing for the Golden State Warriors (1997–1999)

Muggsy led the Warriors in assists in the 1997–98 season. He did this even though he started less than half of their games. He played 36 games in the next season. He missed some time due to injuries and chickenpox.

Time with the Toronto Raptors (1999–2001)

Before the 1999–2000 season, Muggsy joined the Toronto Raptors. He was reunited with his old teammate, Dell Curry. In 1999–2000, he played 80 games. This was the first time since 1992–93. He only started five of those games. On March 3, 2000, at 35 years old, he scored 24 points. This tied his career high.

Due to his ongoing knee injury, Muggsy only played three games in the 2000–01 season. This was his final season. His last game was on January 27, 2001. He did not score any points in that game. On February 22, 2001, he was traded to the New York Knicks. He was part of the trade to help the Knicks with their team budget. He never actually played for New York. At the end of his last season, Muggsy was twelfth all-time in assists in NBA history. He was also thirteenth all-time in assists per game.

On August 10, 2001, Muggsy was traded to the Dallas Mavericks. The Mavericks let him go on October 29. He told the team he wanted to stop playing basketball. He needed to care for his mother, who was battling cancer. On October 31, he became a free agent. In July 2002, Muggsy said he still hoped to play again.

Muggsy Bogues's Career Statistics

Regular Season Games

Playoff Games

Muggsy's Life After the NBA

Muggsy wrote a book about his life called In the Land of Giants. It came out in 1994. The book talks about growing up in Baltimore. It also shares his journey to success in the NBA.

After his NBA career, Muggsy worked in real estate. Then, in 2005, he became the head coach of the Charlotte Sting. This was a team in the Women's National Basketball Association. Muggsy was shorter than all of his players. The shortest Sting player was 5 feet 6 inches tall. He coached the Sting to a 14–30 record. The team stopped playing in January 2007.

In 2011, he became the head coach for a high school basketball team. This was at United Faith Christian Academy in Charlotte, North Carolina. He had been an assistant coach there before. During his three seasons, six players from his school became all-state players. He left in 2014 to try other things.

On March 18, 2014, Muggsy became an ambassador for the Charlotte Hornets. This meant he helped with the team's new look and image.

In 2018, Muggsy invested in a clothing company called Ash & Erie. This company makes clothes for shorter men. He saw them on the TV show Shark Tank. He then contacted Mark Cuban, who also invested in the company.

In January 2020, Muggsy was chosen to be in the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame.

Muggsy also started the Muggsy Bogues Family Foundation. This group helps students with scholarships. It also creates community programs for families who need help. The foundation wants to encourage young people and families. It provides resources to help them succeed.

Muggsy Bogues's Personal Life

Muggsy met his wife, Kim, in 1984. They met at a Dunbar High School alumni game. They had a daughter, Brittney, in 1987. They got married in 1989. Their son, Ty, was born in 1991. Muggsy also has another daughter, Tyisha, from an earlier relationship. Muggsy and Kim separated in 1995. They divorced in 1997. Kim kept custody of their children.

Muggsy met Sharon Smith in 2003. They dated for five years. Sharon passed away from breast cancer in July 2008. Muggsy and his ex-wife, Kim, remarried in 2015.

On June 21, 1991, Muggsy and his Hornets teammate Dell Curry played in a Minor League Baseball game. They played for the Gastonia Rangers. The team owner arranged this for fun. Muggsy played second base. He did not get any hits.

Muggsy's sister, Sherron, worked for Baltimore's Recreation and Parks Department for 32 years. She passed away from cancer in 2015 at age 55. The mayor of Baltimore named June 27 "Sherron Bogues Day" to honor her.

Muggsy's grandson, Samartine, is a young basketball player. He got attention for his skills in elementary school. In 2020, he received his first college basketball scholarship offer. He was still a freshman in high school.

Muggsy Bogues in Movies and TV

Muggsy appeared in the movie Space Jam. He was one of five NBA players in the movie. Their basketball skills were stolen by alien villains.

He also had a small role in the movie Juwanna Mann.

Muggsy made a short appearance in the TV show Curb Your Enthusiasm. He played himself in the episode.

In 1996, Muggsy had a cameo in the movie Eddie. He supported the main character in the movie.

He also appeared on an episode of Saturday Night Live. He was on the show with Charles Barkley.

Muggsy was in an episode of Hang Time. In this episode, he spoke about why steroids are bad.

He appeared in "Rebound," an episode of Royal Pains. He attended a party in the episode.

Muggsy was interviewed for Baltimore Boys. This was an ESPN 30 for 30 documentary. It focused on the Dunbar Poets high school basketball team.

Advertisements Featuring Muggsy

Muggsy has been in many TV commercials. During his playing career, he tried to avoid ads that focused on his height. He appeared in commercials for Sprite, AT&T, and Hyundai. In 1995, he and his mother were in commercials for Reebok. In 2002, he was in IBM commercials. In 2014, he played a Christmas elf in an ad for NBA 2K15. In 2016, he was in an ad for Axe. In 2019, Muggsy appeared in commercials for GoDaddy. In 2022, he was in a commercial for Caesars Entertainment.

Images for kids

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  Bogues in 2023

See also

In Spanish: Muggsy Bogues para niños

• List of shortest players in National Basketball Association history
• List of National Basketball Association career assists leaders