All in the Family: Ranking the greatest NBA families

1. The Barrys

The Barrys are the biggest family to ever meddle in the NBA. Their dynasty starts with Bruce Hale, who played in the early NBA, held coaching positions on college teams and in the ABA, and was introduced to the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame in 1986.

His daughter married Rick Barry, starting the dynasty of Barry basketball players. Rick Barry played in the NBA and the ABA and won championships in both leagues. Barry is best known for his unique underhand free throw shot and for being one of the best scorers in early pro basketball.

Barry retired in 1980, was inducted into the Hall of Fame, and was named a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team. Together with Pam Hale, he had four sons, passing on the basketball talent running through the family.

The most successful of the Barry sons is Brent Barry. He won two titles with the San Antonio Spurs in 2005 and 2007, after winning the Dunk Contests in 1996. After retiring, Brent Barry stayed close to basketball, working as a sports commentator and then taking on the role of vice president of basketball operations for the Spurs.

His brothers were not quite as successful, barely leaving a mark on the NBA, but it is still impressive how many dedicated basketball players just one family managed to turn out. Scooter Barry kept his basketball career alive for 17 years after winning an NCAA title with Kansas State. Following his college graduation, he went on to play some in the U.S. and then bounced around Europe, where he won the Belgian League Championship.

Jon and Drew Barry spent some time in the NBA as reserves but never found as much success as their brother or father. The Barry dynasty does not end here, though. Rick Barry has one more son with his second wife, Lynn Norenberg Barry, who added her own basketball skills to the gene pool.

She was a star at the College of William and Mary and is the former assistant executive director of USA women’s basketball. Their son Canyon Barry plays in the G League and has not made the jump to the NBA yet, but he just won a gold medal at the FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup and was named the tournament MVP.

Overall, the NBA has a rich muti-generational history, proving that it is indeed a family sport.