Kaleb Suggs is a standout sophomore basketball player for Colbert Heights. He helped the Wildcats win the Class 2A, Area 16 tournament with 26 points and 17 rebounds in the final against Red Bay. Just 15 years old, Suggs is 6-foot, 7 and wears a size 17 shoe, which makes for some difficulty in finding clothes and shoes that fit.

1. There aren’t a lot of 6-7 high school sophomores out there. Where did your height come from?

I have a tall family. My dad is also 6-7, and I have an aunt that’s 6-3. My dad played basketball at UNA. My aunt didn’t play basketball, she was just tall.

2. When did your growth spurt really hit?

I grew about five inches from seventh- to eighth-grade year. I was 6-4 in the eighth grade, and then grew another 3 inches from then until now.

3. I can’t imagine there are many places around here that sell clothes for a 6-7 guy. Where do you get your clothes?

I’ve gotten the hang of online shopping. I always have to buy clothes a lot because I grow a lot. I had to order a lot of clothes to get the length in the jeans right. There aren’t any jeans off the rack that are long enough for me.

4. And how do you find shoes that are big enough for a size 17 foot?

I pretty much just Google “size 17 shoes” and if I find something I like, I’ll order them. I’ve got a lot of tennis shoes, usually Nike or Adidas. I have one pair of brown and one pair of black shoes and that’s it.

5. Since you’re much taller than most everybody else in the school, do you ever get comments from other students, or is everyone cool about it?

I’m pretty good friends with everyone, so they’ll cut up with me about my height. They’ll say things like “I’m going to cut part of your legs off” or “I wish I had three inches from you, can you donate it to me?” But it’s all in good fun.