The tallest man I ever saw play on the hardwood...

The year was 1986.

I was at a basketball game at Arco Arena in Sacramento, California. A very, very tall man stood up. checked in at the scorers' table and entered the game. The man was 7-foot-7. He walked slowly to his position under the bucket and awaited a shot from the Sacramento Kings. He stuck his hand up, blocked the attempt and sent the ball sailing...into the crowd.

He led the NBA in blocked shots that year for Washington with an average of five blocks per game. I wondered at the time, why he didn't average 10 per game. He was so tall. Manute Bol was the towering figure I saw play that day.

Bol, the man from Sudan, played 10 years in the NBA, averaging 2.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game. He died Saturday at the age of 47. Bol remained tall in life as well as basketball. His humanitarian work in Africa is well documented. I'm glad I got to see him play.