Grizzlies’ Asian Rookie Duo Top NBA Height Disparity
By James Moreau | 18 Apr, 2025

The Asian duo of Zach Edey and Yuki Kawamura, the NBA’s tallest and shortest players, ended up on the same team.

In today’s NBA the tallest and shortest players are not only teammates, they are also Asian. 

The Grizzlies’ rookie duo consists of 5’8” Japanese native Yuki Kawamura and 7’4” Chinese Canadian Zach Edey. Both deviate 10 inches from the average NBA player’s height of 6’6”.

This is the first teammate pairing of the shortest and tallest NBA players since 1987 when 5’3” Muggsy Bogues and 7’6” Manute Bol played for the Washington Bullets.

Following a storied collegiate career, Edey made an immediate impact in his first year, starting at center in 55 of his 66 games. The 23-year-old has been impressive crashing the boards, averaging 8.3 rebounds per game, including 3.5 of those off the offensive glass, 7th best in the league.  

At an imposing 305 pounds, Edey has provided the Grizzlies solid rim protection with a 15th best 1.3 blocks per game while scoring 9.2 points per game for 58% shooting.  He’s being well compensated for his impressive contributions, with a four-year rookie contract reportedly worth over $26 million.

Edey had developed into the game’s most distinguished college star at Purdue, twice earning national player of the year title during in both his junior and senior years.  He capped off his college career as All-Big Ten big man, leading the Boilermakers to the national championship game for the first time since the 60s.  His accolades made him the 9th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.

Toronto native Edey has represented Canada internationally.  At the 2021 FIBA Under-19 World Cup he led all players in rebounds per game and earned all-tournament honors.  He helped Canada win a bronze medal in the 2023 FIBA World Cup with a decisive 9-point win over the United States.

During high school, Edey moved to Florida to attend IMG Academy, a renowned boarding school for young athletes.  He emerged as a 3-Star Recruit. 

Early on Edey played hockey and baseball, initially shunning basketball as “too predictable.”  His mother Julia, born to Chinese immigrants, stands 6’3”.

Kawamura, also 23, fought his way into the NBA via a less conventional path.  He is currently on a two-way contract worth over half a million under which he splits his time between the Grizzlies and their G-League affiliate, the Hustle. On the NBA side he played just under 100 minutes over 22 games, scoring a total of 36 points.  

The best game of his NBA rookie season was the last regular season game.  In a win over the Mavericks Kawamura finished with a career-high 12 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists, topping December’s 10/3/3 performance against Oklahoma City.  

For the G-League Hustle the 159-pound point guard averaged 12.4 points and 7.8 assists per game in 24 games this season. 

Before joining the NBA Kawamura stood out for Japan in the 2024 Olympics, averaging over 20 points, 7 assists, and 3 rebounds in three games. His most notable performance was against the eventual silver medaling host country France, which boasts two players over 7 feet tall.  Kawamura dropped a career-high 29 points, with 7 rebounds and 6 assists in a valiant upset bid that fell just short after going to overtime.

Kawamura had enjoyed success with the Yokohama B-Corsairs in Japan's B.League, earning MVP and Rookie of the Year honors in 2023.  

The Yanai native began his pro career while still in high school, joining the San-en NeoPhoenix in 2020 as a “special designated player.”  At 18 he became the youngest player to score in a B.League game.

The unlikely pairing of Edey and Kawamura is tantalizing to contemplate for those of us who saw the preseason game highlighted by Kawamura’s no-look feed to Edey for an easy dunk.  But during the regular season the odd couple were together on the floor for only 19 minutes, with the extent of future pairings uncertain.  

As a lottery pick Edey is securely a part of Grizzlies’ future plans.  Kawamura’s future is less clear.  As a fringe two-way player his stay in the NBA could be just a cup of coffee unless the perfect combination of luck and circumstances puts him on the Grizzlies’ 12-man rotation.