Times Sports Excellence Ran In The Family
There's no single gene that guarantees athletic success, but it's hard to deny that sports excellence often seems to run in the bloodlines. The sporting landscape has seen no shortage of skilled families, from fathers and sons to siblings.
This doesn't mean that an athlete needs to have a skilled parent or sibling in order to achieve. But if they do have this sports excellence in their bloodline, the route to superstardom seems a little easier.
Pau and Marc Gasol
The two best Spanish basketball players of all time are brothers: Centers Pau and Marc Gasol. Pau broke into the NBA in 2001 with the Memphis Grizzlies, while younger brother Marc also started with the Grizzlies in 2008.
The brothers have a combined nine NBA All-Star appearances and three championships. They've also achieved significant success in their native Spain, where both wound down their professional careers in the early 2020s.
Pat and Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Mahomes is regarded by most as the best quarterback currently playing in the NFL, and the heir apparent to legends like Joe Montana and Tom Brady. But before he dominated on the gridiron, his father, Pat Sr., was a successful MLB pitcher.
Pat Mahomes wasn't a superstar, but he did play for 11 seasons in a career that spanned North America and Japan. Today, he's prominent on social media as he celebrates the successes of his son.
LeBron and Bronny James
It'll be some time before NBA fans know whether the LeBron/Bronny Lakers will be a success, failure, or somewhere in between. In any event, the two will make history as the first father-son duo to play at the same time in the NBA.
Everyone knows that LeBron is one of, if not the best, to ever play the game. LeBron Jr., best known as Bronny, played one season at USC before he was drafted 55th overall by the Lakers to team up with his dad.
Dell, Steph, and Seth Curry
Dell Curry retired as one of the best Charlotte Hornets ever, the franchise leader in points and three-pointers, after an illustrious career that spanned 17 seasons.
While Dell Curry isn't exactly forgotten today, his success has been eclipsed by his son, Stephen. Steph Curry is a lock for the Hall of Fame, with four championships and ten All-Star appearances under his belt. He's regarded as the best long-range shooter in NBA history. Steph's younger brother, Seth, has also carved out a decade-long NBA career.
Floyd Mayweather Sr. and Jr.
Floyd Mayweather Sr. was a welterweight mainstay throughout the '70s and into the '80s, using his smarts and defensive style to achieve a 28-6-1 record, with 18 TKOs, in his career.
He went on to train his son, Floyd Jr., as he followed his father's footsteps into the boxing world. Mayweather Jr., of course, is one of the best fighters in history. He retired with an undefeated record after beating Conor McGregor in 2017 and held 15 major world championships during his career.
The Sutter family
None of the Sutters were major stars in the NHL, but you'd still be hard-pressed to find a family with more members who reached the top echelon of a given sport. Six of the Sutter brothers - Brian, Darryl, Duane, Brent, Ron, and Rich - went on to play in the NHL.
The second generation of Sutters also featured NHLers in Brandon, Brett, and Brody, while another three - Lukas, Riley, and Shaun - also played pro hockey.
Bengie, José, and Yadier Molina
It isn't uncommon to see multiple siblings excel in the same sport, but it's rare to see multiple siblings all play the same specialized position. The Molina brothers — Bengie, José, and Yadier — all had long and successful careers as MLB catchers.
Of the three, Yadier is the most accomplished. With ten All-Star appearances, two World Series championships, and nine Gold Glove Awards, Yadier Molina is a lock for the Hall of Fame.
The Manning family
Peyton and Eli Manning were two of the NFL's best quarterbacks in their prime, but the brothers were actually the second of three generations to excel on the gridiron. Their dad, Archie Manning, was a two-time Pro Bowl selection during his career with the Saints, Oilers, and Vikings.
Both Peyton and Eli had strong NFL careers, while a third brother, Cooper, had to cut his career short after being diagnosed with a spinal condition. Cooper's son, Arch (named after his grandfather Archie), is currently a collegiate quarterback for the Texas Longhorns.
Venus and Serena Williams
Venus and Serena Williams were born one year apart and, starting in the early 2000s, went on to dominate the women's tennis world for nearly two decades.
The sisters were trained for success from a young age, with parents Oracene and Richard teaching them everything they knew about tennis. Together, the Williams sisters have a combined 30 singles Grand Slam titles and have also teamed up in doubles competitions throughout their careers.
Jason and Travis Kelce
The Kelce brothers attracted a lot of mainstream attention thanks to Travis Kelce dating Taylor Swift, but the two had already been familiar faces to NFL fans for years at that point.
Center Jason Kelce, who recently retired, was a seven-time Pro Bowl selection and won a Super Bowl with the Eagles. His younger brother Travis is a tight end for the Chiefs and has been named to the Pro Bowl nine times to go along with his three Super Bowl rings.
Buddy, Rob, and Rex Ryan
You often hear about coaching trees in the NFL — where the assistants of one great coach go on to coach their own teams and hire their own assistants. Sometimes, coaching trees look more like family trees.
In the case of the Ryan clan, Buddy Ryan paved the way for his sons Rex and Rob. While all three Ryans played college football, they made their names as pro coaches. The Ryans have won a combined five Super Bowls as either head or assistant coaches.
Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr.
The Griffeys made history in 1989 when 19-year-old Ken Griffey Jr. teamed up with his 39-year-old dad, Ken Sr., to become the first-ever father and son duo to team up in Major League Baseball.
While Junior's Hall of Fame career has largely overshadowed his dad's accomplishments, Ken Sr. was no slouch. As a member of the Cincinnati Reds' Big Red Machine dynasty of the 1970s, he was a two-time World Series champion and a three-time All-Star.
Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Jr.
"The Intimidator" Dale Earnhardt was one of NASCAR's best drivers of the '80s and '90s, winning the Winston Cup Series seven times and being named as one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998. He died tragically in a crash at the 2001 Daytona 500.
His son Dale Jr., who made his debut in 1999, carried on the Earnhardt legacy throughout an impressive career of his own. Dale Jr. won 26 career races, with 260 top ten finishes, and 15 pole positions, before retiring after the 2017 season.
The Ripken family
For a time in the 1980s and early '90s, the Baltimore Orioles resembled a family business. Cal Ripken Sr. coached and briefly managed the team while his sons Cal Jr. and Billy were infielders for the O's.
In the long run, Cal Jr. had the best playing career of the three, setting a likely unbreakable consecutive games record en route to his 2007 election into the Hall of Fame. His brother Billy played in the big leagues for a decade as well.
Reggie and Cheryl Miller
A frequent insult directed at Indiana Pacers legend Reggie Miller was that he wasn't even the best basketball player in his own family. While this claim is debatable, it does have some merit, as his older sister Cheryl is a women's basketball legend.
Reggie's Hall of Fame career is well documented. Cheryl, unfortunately, hit her prime long before the WNBA was founded. She was an excellent player, but at the time, her only options were college and international basketball.
Jack, Jim and John Harbaugh
Like the Ryan family, the Harbaugh coaching/family tree started with Jack Harbaugh, who coached across the high school and collegiate ranks for more than half a century. His sons Jim and John both played college football, with Jim enjoying a long NFL career as a quarterback.
John Harbaugh went the coaching route, starting out as running backs coach at Western Michigan in 1984 and working his way up to the pro ranks. Jim Harbaugh also became a coach after his playing career ended, finding success at both the college and pro levels.
The Staal family
They're not quite as big a family as the Sutters, but the Staals are still pretty close. Four brothers from Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, all made it to the NHL — and all but one of them played for the Carolina Hurricanes at the same time.
Eric, Marc, and Jordan Staal have all played more than a thousand NHL games, an impressive mark of longevity. Their fourth brother, Jared, had less success, playing just two games in the NHL.
The Matthews family
The Matthews family is now in its third generation of NFL stardom, one of just five third-generation families in NFL history. Clay Matthews Sr. was the first to play in the NFL, finding stardom across various positions in the 1950s.
His two sons, Clay Jr. and Bruce, have careers of their own, while Clay Jr.'s three sons — Clay III, Kyle, and Casey — all played college football. Of these three, both Clay III and Casey made it to the NFL.
Vladimir Guerrero Sr. and Jr.
Vladimir Guerrero Sr. and Jr. both made their marks starring for Canadian MLB teams, with Vlad Sr. playing for the Montreal Expos and Vlad Jr. currently playing for the Toronto Blue Jays.
They're part of a much larger baseball dynasty, though — Vladimir Sr.'s brother Wilton also played in the big leagues, while his other son, Pablo, is a prospect in the Texas Rangers organization.
The Alou family
Felipe, Matty, and Jesús Alou made history with the San Francisco Giants in 1963 when they became the first brothers to ever play left, center, and right field for the same team in the same game.
Felipe went on to have a long career as an MLB manager, where he managed his son Moisés with both the Montreal Expos and San Francisco Giants. Another of Felipe's sons, Luis Rojas, went on to coach and manage in Major League Baseball.
