Earlier tonight Mr. Team Mom was trying to recall āwho was that guy . . . who was the brother of that guy . . . he played for the Blazers . . . his brother was the better oneā.
I love a challenge, so with that, I was off and searching.
Turns out the guy he was looking for was Harvey Grant, identical twin brother of Horace Grant. Harvey played for the Trail Blazers from 1993-1996 . Horace won 4 NBA Championships with the Chicago Bulls.
But the key point here is that I found this awesome List of Brothers who have Played in the NBA.
According to this list, there have been 61 sets of brothers in the NBA, some with 3 or more players like
The Barrys: Jon, Brent and Drew
The Joneses: Caldwell, Charles, Major and Wil
The Russells: Campy, Frank and Walker
I havenāt looked up every one of the players, but here are some highlights. I start with brothers who have Blazer connections, then active NBA players who are brothers. I wrap it up with some of the historical families.
Brothers with Trail Blazer Connections (starting with twinsies!)
From Brooklyn Eagles Sports Photo via @USEmbRu on Twitter.
Robin and Brook Lopez (twins)Ā Much has been written about the Lopez brothers (for example, from the NYT: Wonderful World of Lopez Twins) whose April 1 birthday seems to fit them well. (Full disclosure, thatās my birthday too.) Before entering the NBA they played together for two years at Stanford. Brook has played his entire career with the Brooklyn Nets, while Robin is more well traveled, playing for the Phoenix Suns and New Orleans Hornets before landing with the Trail Blazers in 2013.
Jarron and Jason Collins (twins) Before the Lopez twins took Stanford by storm, the Collins brothers were there first. Fun fact, their high school teammate was actor Jason Segel who once won the team slam dunk contest. Jarron Collins played with the Blazers in the 2009 summer league. He was a Trail Blazer again in 2014, completing 2 10-day contracts with us before retiring in 2014. His brother Jason was a trailblazer of a different kind, well known as the first openly gay player in the NBA.
Stephen and Joey Graham (twins) Stephan Grahamās basketball career included stints in the NBA, NBA Summer League, the D-League and Europe. He played 2 months with the Trail Blazers in 2006-2007. Twin brother Joeyās professional career lasted from 2005-2011.
Nick and Steve Jones Steve āSnapperā Jones, the older of the two NBA Jones brothers, is a Portland and Oregon favorite. He grew up in Portland and was a star at local public high school, Franklin. He attended the University of Oregon, and ended his NBA career as a Portland Trail Blazer in 1976. He spent another 20 years or so covering the NBA. He was the first analyst I remember listening to and is known as one of the only people to actually cut Bill Walton off. Nick also attended a local high school (Marshall) and the U of O. His NBA/ABA career ran from 1967-1972.
(Image of Calvin Natt:Ā http://hoopshabit.com/2014/12/19/50-greatest-nba-players-1980s/7/)
Calvin and Kenny Natt Calvin played 11 seasons in the NBA and younger brother Kenny played for the NBA, CBA and WBL. Calvin was with the Trail Blazers 1980-1984. Kenny went on to have a successful career as an assistant coach. Calvin went on to become a minister, and followed up on a lifetime fascination with mortuaries.
When Calvin Natt was on the road with the Trail Blazers, the small forward wouldn't visit bars, clubs or museums in his free time.
He would find the local mortuary and interview the mortician.
From Oregonianās series: Blazerās Top 40, by Jason Quick.
He eventually opened a funeral home in the Denver area and for a while ran a non-profit to raise funds for parents to pay for funerals for their children. Ā
Audie and Sylvester Norris Ā Audie played for the Trail Blazers 1982-1985 where he earned the nickname āAtomic Dogā from teammate Mychel Thompson. Sylvester played with the Spurs 1979-80.
Jim and John Paxson Jim was the number 12 draft pick by Trail Blazers in 1979 and went on to play 9 seasons with them. He was a two time All-Star selection. Younger brother John played in Chicago and San Antonio, eanring 3 championships with the Bulls.
Steve and Tom Scheffler Tom played mostly in Europe, but spent a season with the 1984-85 Trail Blazers. Steve was younger by 13 years and played with the Hornets and the Sonics, where he was a fan favorite off the bench.
Chuck and Wesley Person Younger brother Wesley Person played with the Blazers for 33 games in a forgettable 2003-2004 season. Chuck was named NBA rookie of the year in 1987 while playing with the Pacers. He retired a Seattle Sonic, after a productive 14 year career.
Other brother duos in the current NBA
Mychel and Klay Thompson When I initially saw this, I thought there was a misprint. A Ā life-long resident of Rip City I know that Mychal is Klay Thompsonās dad. Turns out Thomspon Jr spells his name with āelā while dad uses āalā. Klayās older Brother Mychel plays mostly for the D-League and Summer League with occasional call-ups.
But check this out (from Wikipedia):
On November 4, 2013, the Sioux Falls Skyforce traded Thompson's rights to the Santa Cruz Warriors.[10] On November 19, 2013, he was acquired by the Warriors.[11]
During this season at Santa Cruz, Thompson played in the back court with Seth Curry. At the same time, their respective brothers Klay and Steph were playing together in the Golden State back court, in a tandem nicknamed the "Splash Brothers." Correspondingly, Mychel and Seth were dubbed the Splash Brothers of the D-League.[12]
(Image:Ā http://www.soonersports.com/PhotoAlbum.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31000&PALBID=934415)
Blake and Taylor Griffin NBA brothers fun fact, Blake Griffinās older brother Taylor Griffin also played for the Santa Cruz Warriors in 2013. (Santa Cruz Warriors Media Guide). Taylor was drafted by Phoenix Suns in 2009 but has played most of his career in the D-League.
Other brothers who are active in the NBA
Marcus and Markieff Morris (twins!)
Cody and Tyler Zeller (Brother Luke played in the D-League and briefly with the Suns)
Jon, Brent and Drew Barry (90s-2000s) Father Rick Berry saw 4 of his 5 sons play pro ball: Jon (14 years), Brent (14 years) and Drew (6 years). Eldest brother Scooter had a 17 year career in the CBA, WBA and in Europe. Ā Brent probably had the most productive NBA career, with two NBA Championships (with the Spurs) and a Slam Dunk Contest win in 1996.
Tom and Dick Van Arsdale (70s and 80s) Another set of twins, Tom and Dick Van Arsdale are featured in the Phoenix Sunās 25th anniversary book in a story called āThe Original Twinsā. Ā They only played one season together (1976-77) and both retired at the end of it at age 35.
An entertaining Ā 2014 interview with the twins for a Sunās Throwback Thursday feature touches on Bill Russell, Oscar Robinson and the steak in Wilt Chamberlainās suitcase.
Caldwell, Charles, Major and Wil Jones (70s and 80s) The Joneses were an extraordinarily tall family. Of 8 kids, the shortest was 6ā 3ā. Six Jones brothers attended Albany State University in Albany, Georgia. Four Jones brothers played in the NBA. Ā Two other brothers played minor league basketball. Ā
For fun, see also: Brack-it: Best NBA Siblings