Jose Alvarado, Jordan McLaughlin are the last of a dying breed

In today’s NBA, the league isundeniably dominated by big men.

The last five MVPs went toGiannis Antetokounmpo (two), Nikola Jokic (two) and Joel Embiid.Rookies Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren stand at a towering7-foot-4 and 7-foot-1 respectively, and both are starting to maketheir mark in the NBA.

As the league embraces this newera filled with giants, it is awesome to see the two sub-6-footguys match up against each other: New Orleans’ Jose Alvarado andMinnesota’s Jordan McLaughlin.

Alvarado and McLaughlin, who areboth listed as 5-foot-11 without shoes, have each carved out a roleon their squad. The two provide different valuable skills off thebench, and they have been vital pieces to their team’ssuccess.

Alvarado impacts the game on thedefensive end by suffocating and pestering ball-handlers. He alsocomes up with his signature blindside steals, which earned him thenickname Grand Theft Alvarado (GTA). McLaughlin, on the other hand,is a crafty playmaker who sets up the Wolves' offense off the benchand serves as a reliable backup for Mike Conley.

In a league where there are 34players who are 7-feet or taller this season alone, Alvarado andMcLaughlin remain outliers and part of a dying breed.

There are only 12 players whoare listed at 6-feet or below in the NBA this season, with theshortest being Markquis Nowell at 5-foot-7 and Jacob Gilyard at5-foot-8. Together, they represent only 3% of the league population– which means small guards are largely going extinct in theNBA.

Unless you’re an establishedpoint guard like Fred VanVleet, Kyle Lowry or Chris Paul, there hasbeen little to no room for these shorter players on NBArosters.

The current trend ofpositionless basketball and do-it-all forwards has certainly hurtthese smaller guards. Whether it be less reliance on traditionalpoint guards to set up an offense or getting hunted out forswitches defensively, teams have been shifting away from saidplayer prototypes. Even a former All-NBA teamer and super scorerlike Isaiah Thomas was virtually driven out of the league mainlybecause of his unfortunate trait of getting exploited on defensedue to his height.

Given this, it’s impressive howAlvarado and McLaughlin are staying in the league. This could beattributed to their specific skill-sets. Both guys show that shortplayers still have a place in the NBA as long as they provide valueand play a certain role effectively and efficiently. In a leaguewhere height is often equated to success, it’s refreshing to seetwo sub-6-foot players hold their own on the court.