Sports

World’s Tallest Teenager Barely Fit On Florida’s Bench During His College Basketball Debut

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Olivier Rioux Florida
University of Florida Athletics

Olivier Rioux made his college basketball debut with the Florida Gators on Monday, kind of. The world’s tallest teenager barely fit on the bench while his team cruised to a 15-point victory with a dominant second half.

Unfortunately, if the first game of the year was any indication, it doesn’t seem like we’re going to see much (or any) of the big fella this season.

Rioux, a three-star recruit in the Class of 2024, committed to Florida over two other offers from Stetson and Florida Atlantic. Head coach Todd Golden believes his staff can mold the massive freshman into an important role player with enough time in the gym. He isn’t quite ready yet.

Olivier Rioux is one of one.

Listed on the roster at 7-foot-9 (!!), 305 pounds, Rioux is the tallest college basketball player of all-time and makes his teammates look miniscule. Just to put his height in perspective, the other player in the following TikTok video is 6-foot-4.

@coopjosefsberg

Post scrimmage dubbbb @olivierrioux

♬ original sound – NBA Basketball Moves – NBA Basketball Moves

Rioux can almost dunk without jumping.

Although there is infinite potential for a 7-foot-9 basketball player who can actually move pretty well for his size, the 18-year-old Canadian will be a project. There is a lot of room to develop.

Rioux did not play even one single minute during No. 21-ranked Florida’s 15-point win on Monday, which would indicate that he is likely going to redshirt. The Gators got up pretty big late in the second half so Golden had an opportunity to put him in the game but chose not to do so. However, he was still on the bench and got to warmup with his team prior to tipoff.

His size is truly astonishing, no matter how many times you see it.

To really drive the point home, take a look at Rioux casually sitting on the bench:

The completely normal-sized chair on which he sat looks like it is made for a young child. His knees are at his chest. His teammates, who are not small, look like they play for a youth rec team rather than a Division I team in the SEC. Olivier Rioux is huge!