Muggsy Bogues -- 'REAL MEN DO YOGA' ... Even Short Ones!

Here's a short story -- Muggsy Bogues is doing yoga now ... and TMZ Sports has the pics!

The 5'3" NBA legend is a newbie to the practice ... but he's already falling in love with it.

In fact, the 49-year-old hosted a big yoga event in Charlotte this weekend with 6'5" Carolina Panthers lineman Byron Bell.

But Bogues says size doesn't matter when you're on the mat -- telling TMZ Sports, "As the smallest player to ever play [in the NBA], doing yoga comes quite natural to me."

He added, "So when I hit the child's pose position, I felt like I was in a crib."