Watch: NBA Star Breaks Down on the Court Coming Face-to-Face With His Marine Brother

Bailey Leonard and Meyers Leonard are two brothers that have a strong friendship.

Following the devastating loss of their father when they were both young, the two clung to each other and their mother through some of life’s most trying circumstances.

At one time, they were without furniture, power, or running water, and the three of them were forced to sleep on the living room floor with just candles for illumination.

“Through adversity and overcoming adversity, individuals get closer together,” Bailey adds.

In the aftermath of their father’s death, the brothers’ remarkable closeness grew even stronger, and it impacted Bailey’s status as an elder brother:

“I want to think of myself as sort of a fatherly figure to Meyers,” he says, despite the fact that he is only 22 months Meyers’ age.

Meyers was understandably saddened when Bailey joined the Marine Corps.

Meyers recounts, “It was really a shock to me, and I walked into my room and sobbed.” “I’d never been without my brother.”

Meyers is terrified every day knowing Bailey is fighting in Afghanistan in the line of duty.

But, despite their distance, he claims that his brother has always been there for him.

An emotional reunion brought the brothers back together after a nine-month separation when Bailey was on his second deployment overseas. It’s one of those things that you simply have to witness for yourself.

Meyers Leonard retired from basketball in January after 9 years in the league. Later this year, he and his wife Ellie are expecting their first child, a son. Bailey now resides in Robinson, Illinois, where the brothers grew up.

Bailey startled his brother once more in a 2020 interview with TNT, when the siblings discussed what 9/11 meant to them both.

When the World Trade Centers collapsed on September 11, 2001, Bailey was 11 years old and Meyers was just 6 years old. That day also happened to be the birthday of the boys’ late father. Bailey was motivated to enlist in the Marine Corps.

Source: faithit.com