These 2 Professional Athletes Are Part Of One Family
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- When Phoenix Suns guard Shaq Harrison flew into beat the buzzer at the end of the first quarter against the Heat Monday night, there was a special guest in the crowd cheering him on. It was his little brother and the Marlins no. 2 prospect Monte. Two professional athletes in one family.
Shaq Harrison said it's "Very surreal because you know it's the things we dreamed of, things we talked about as little kids, and now it's manifesting. And when you see it right before your eyes, it's an opportunity to go get it. It's honestly a blessing."
Shaq and Monte are miles apart working on their respective crafts, but growing up, they were inseparable and sometimes too competitive.
Monte said, "Man it started into fights, like fistfights, arguments...over time we knew there would come something out if it."
"Competitive from sports to just watching TV to everything. It would turn into some fights sometimes. It was great growing up with him. It made me into who I am today. That's why I'm so competitive on the court," added Shaq.
The Harrisons cherish every opportunity they get to watch each other play. In part to honor their late grandmother. They wear wristbands to remind themselves that she actually predicted their success.
Shaq explained, "I wear these every day because these were the first ones I ever got. I just wear them every single game to know that she's with me. I do it for her."
Monte recalled, "My grandma always put us in the right direction. She was like ya'll going to be something special. Ya'll going to be something special… She's looking down at us proud. Hopefully, we can keep doing it and keep making everybody proud."
Because they're either shooting hoops or trying to hit fastballs they rarely get to see each other. One recent connection happened over the phone when Shaq found out he was getting signed by Phoenix in February.
"We had some tears. He was excited. We was just on FaceTime and didn't have to say anything. We didn't want to hang up the phone because it happened. It was just a great moment," said Shaq.
Monte said his older brother will be the first call when the Marlins officially bring him up to the major leagues.
