Tyrone “Muggsy” Bogues dribbles the ball up for the Charlotte Hornets in 1990. Bogues headlines NBA birthdays for Jan. 9.
With over 5,000 players in NBA history, at least one player was born on every day of the calendar year – including three leap day ballers. Our day-by-day breakdown of the players born on each day of the year continues.
Below are the most notable NBA players born on Jan 9.
Muggsy Bogues (1965)
Bogues is one of the more unique and memorable players of his era. The 5’3” guard is the shortest player in NBA history but carved out a 14-year career in a sport where most players at least a foot taller than him. It all started when Muggsy was selected 12th overall in the 1987 NBA Draft by the Washington Bullets. He really made a name for himself when he joined the Charlotte Hornets his sophomore season, spending the next decade there. Bogues spent time with the Golden State Warriors and Toronto Raptors after that before retiring in 2001. Bogues averaged 7.7 points, 2.6 rebounds, 7.6 assists and 1.5 steals throughout his 14-year career.
Michael Beasley (1989)
Beasley was the best player in the country when he played his college ball at Kansas State, earning him the second overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft. He finished seventh in Rookie of the Year voting in that debut season with the Miami Heat, spending his first two seasons in South Beach. He really broke out when he joined the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2010, averaging a career-high 19.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.7 blocks per game. He earned his frequent flyer miles from there, suiting up for the Phoenix Suns, Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers. Beasley played his last game in the NBA in 2019 and has played in China and the BIG3 since then.
Want to see every NBA player born on January 9? Here is the rest of the list in chronological order:
- Fred Diute (January 9, 1929)
- M.L. Carr (January 9, 1951)
- Aaron Swinson (January 9, 1971)
- Sharrod Ford (January 9, 1982)
- Bobby Jones (January 9, 1984)
- Samardo Samuels (January 9, 1989)
- Terrence Jones (January 9, 1992)
- Luka Samanic (January 9, 2000)
- Timmy Allen (January 9, 2000)
- Zeke Nnaji (January 9, 2001)
- Caleb Houstan (January 9, 2003)
