Pau and Marc Gasol. Dominique and Gerald Wilkins. Bernard and Albert King. Barry brothers.
They are all the greatest sibling combination in basketball history.
Illinois high school basketball has a long and growing list of great brothers who have influenced the sport in a major way over the last 100 years.
There is a state championship team that is driven by brothers.
Phil and Paul Judson led the famous Hebron team to the state championship in 1952. And repeating the Hebron story never gets old.
The Judson twins were two of a total of 16 seniors in Hebron that year –– nine girls and seven boys. The Judson brothers are synonymous with Illinois high school basketball knowledge after helping little Hebron to a 64-59 state championship overtime victory over Quincy during single-class basketball.
The Battle of Hebron-Quincy was the first televised state championship in state history.
Ted Caiazza was the focal point of the Lyons state championship team the following year in 1953. But brothers Leon and Joel McRae were instrumental in helping Caiazza and LT to a perfect 29-0 record.
But Illinois high school basketball is seeing perhaps the biggest sibling star streak the state has ever seen.
Last season Miles and Wesley Rubin, a pair of Division I prospects in the senior class, led Simeon to a city title and a state runner-up finish in Class 3A. The Class 4A title game included all-around and Iowa-bound Owen Freeman, along with his younger brother Braden Freeman, helping Moline become state champion.
And arguably the best two tandem brothers in the state's long history including sisters Christie and Fears.
Both pairs of brothers are included in the short list of the seven best sibling combinations in Illinois high school basketball history.
Max and Cameron Christie (Rolling Meadows)
The Christie brothers are definitely near the top –– if not the top –– when it comes to the best sibling combinations in state history. And they both played their four years of high school in Illinois.
Christies combined to score an incredible 3,989 career points between them, including a shortened COVID year in 2021 that limited the brothers to just 15 games.
Max Christie, Chicago Sun-Times Player of the Year and McDonald's All-American, scored 2,100 career points and was selected three times in all states. The 6-6 guard then played one season at Michigan State and is now completing his rookie season with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Cameron Christie averaged 25 points per game as a senior en route to finishing his career with 1,889 points. The two-time all-stater made a school record 101 3-pointers last season and finished with 235 career shots. Christie is headed to the Big Ten next season to play for Minnesota.
No one can really capture the thrill of watching the Christie brothers together –– at least at the highest level together –– as COVID kept gyms empty and limited Rolling Meadows to just 15 conference games when Max was a senior and Cameron was a sophomore in 2021.
Jeremy and Jeremiah's Fear (Joliet West)
The Fears' journey at Joliet came to a halt. Jeremy Fears, Jr., left after his junior year to attend La Lumiere in Indiana for two years.
Jeremy returned home last season to play his senior year with his wildly talented little brother, sophomore Jeremiah. Together they filled the gym all season and led Joliet West to 28 wins and sexy title game appearances.
Senior Jeremy Fears is the Sun-Times Player of the Year and a McDonald's All-American. He averaged 19.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game.
Jeremiah Fears is the City/Suburban Hoops Report's top tier two prospect in the state. But, like his brother, he too decided to leave the state and follow the prep school route instead of playing his final two years in Illinois.
Tyler Ulis and Ahron Ulis (Marian Catholics)
They never played together, but the success story that the Ulis brothers have had in leading Maria Catholic basketball to unprecedented heights.
Tyler Ulis dazzled for four years and evolved into a McDonald's All-American during his senior season. He was a two-time all-state selection and helped the Spartans achieve a 57-7 record during his junior and senior years.
Ulis, who finished his high school career with 2,335 points, 578 assists and 283 steals, was named SEC Player of the Year while at Kentucky and played two seasons in the NBA.
A few years later came younger brother Ahron Ulis, who scored over 1,500 career points and was an all-state selection as well. Prior to leaving for Iowa, Ulis won 78 games in his final three seasons at Marian Catholic, including a third-place finish in Class 3A.
Lloyd Batts (Thornton) and Boyd Batts (Thornridge)
Arguably the best sibling combination in state history.
When you're considered one of the greatest players in Thornton basketball history, you're in the company of the elect.
When Lloyd Batts graduated high school in 1970, he came out as the all-time leading scorer in Thornton history with 1,601 career points. He was a two-time all-state election. Batts headed for Cincinnati where he was a star, scoring 1,585 points in just three seasons there.
Boyd Batts' younger brother is also a star. He was part of Thornridge's famous team in the early 1970s that won back-to-back state championships and compiled an 84-8 three-year record. Boyd Batts, who played college in Hawaii and then UNLV, scored more than 1,500 career points.
Dennis and Bruce Douglas (Quincy)
Bruce Douglas was an Illinois basketball legend and the leader of several iconic Quincy teams in the early 1980's. In four years at Quincy, the Blue Devils compiled a 123–5 record and reached four straight IHSA State Finals. Douglas led the 1980-81 team to a perfect 33-0 state championship season. He finished his career with over 2,000 career points.
Following a high school All-American career, Bruce Douglas went on to star for Illinois where he was named Big Ten Player of the Year.
Bruce Douglas teamed with his brother, Dennis Douglas, for the 1981 state title and was part of a famous 64-win streak over two seasons. Dennis Douglas was also an all-state selection, scoring 1,524 career points. He played college at Northern Illinois before moving to Ferris State.
David and Martel Bailey (Westinghouse)
The Bailey brothers were Chicago basketball royalty for roughly eight years, starting with their high school career at Westinghouse in the mid-1990s and through their standout years in college.
The fun, dynamic, undersized brother and sister were electric and starred in college at Loyola (David) and UIC (Martell).
The 5-9 Martell Bailey was an all-state selection in 1999-2000 when he averaged 14.5 points, 8.3 assists and 4.1 game steals. He led Westinghouse to a 31-2 record and was runner-up to the state as a senior. He played three seasons at UIC where he finished with 789 points and 656 assists, including one season where he led the nation in assists.
Older brother David Bailey, a 5-8 dynamo who had graduated from Westinghouse a year earlier in 1999, provided significant numbers at Loyola, scoring nearly 2,000 career points (1,933) while averaging five assists a game throughout his career.
Nick Martinelli, Dom Martinelli and Jimmy Martinelli (Glenbrook South)
What about the trio of brothers?
The whopping number that stands out is this one: 4,287
That's the career points the Martinelli brothers poured for Glenbrook South basketball from 2013 to 2022.
The overall production of the three brothers is on another level when you also consider them racking up 1,349 rebounds together.
But the wins these brothers stacked up at a venue that had never been a traditional basketball powerhouse until their arrival were equally impressive. Of the five biggest one-season win totals in school history, four came with Martinelli on the roster.
Dom and Nick join forces to help the 2019-20 team achieve a school record 29 wins. It was defeated two years later when Nick led the Titans to a 33-3 record and the program's first sectional championship.
Dom Martinelli, who set a single game scoring record with 51 points in a game, is the all-time leading scorer in school history with more than 2,000 career points. Nick Martinelli is a two-time all-state election. He averaged 21.8 points per game as a junior and 22.8 points as a senior, finishing as the third all-time leading scorer in school history.
The oldest brother, Jimmy, went on to play Division III basketball at New York University where he was a starter and captain for four years. Dom currently plays at St. Thomas in Minnesota, while Nick will start his sophomore season at Northwestern next year.