Ranking the Top 10 Three-Headed Monsters in Sports Right Now
What's in a pair? Well, in sports, not as much as you would think.
Nope, these days the proven recipe has been to have more than just two stars on a team to have a legitimate shot at winning a championship.
Teams like the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA and the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL have had great success by having three superstars at various positions, and other teams are following suit.
Which trios are the best in sports right now, though? I did my due diligence to rank the top 10.
10. Baylor Bears Football
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Trio: Bryce Petty, Shock Linwood, Antwan Goodley
They may not be the No. 1 ranked team in the nation right now, but if you want to know why the Baylor Bears football team is currently ranked No. 5 in the country and undefeated heading into their huge game against TCU this weekend, it's because of three guys at the skill positions on offense.
Quarterback Bryce Petty, running back Shock Linwood and wide receiver Antwan Goodley are about as good a trio as you'll find in the college game right now.
And while neither of the players put up eye-popping numbers that will draw national attention to them for big-time awards, they complement one another perfectly—which make the Bears a serious national title threat.
9. Manchester United
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Trio: Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie, Radamel Falcao
When it comes to the pairing of three dynamic and potentially lethal players up top on a soccer field, there might not be a better combination than what Manchester United can currently run out there.
Although the pairing of Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie, Radamel Falcao is still a new experiment for the Reds—as Falcao recently just went to United on loan—if Man Utd can find a way to keep these three together, it might start a run of seasons that would be unmatched in recent years.
The trio has already racked up a combined six goals and four assists—so the rest of the English Premier League might want to take notice if they haven't already.
8. Detroit Tigers
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Trio: Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, David Price
It's a shame that baseball fans only got a chance to see the Detroit Tigers' rotation of Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander and David Price together for just a little less than half a season.
Acquired in a trade from the Tampa Bay Rays at the trade deadline, the Tigers—and, pretty much, all of major league baseball—assumed that Detroit would make a deep October run thanks to the three-headed monster they could throw at opposing batters.
It unfortunately didn't happen in 2014, but fans of the team can be excited for next year, already, as the trio with a combined three Cy Young Awards will have at least one more season together—as Price is scheduled for free agency following 2015—if not more.
Even as Verlander had a down year this season, he's still capable of being unhittable. For that reason, manager Brad Ausmus can probably sleep happy knowing that one of these guys could be his first, second or third starter, in whatever order he wanted them.
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7. Real Madrid
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Trio: Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema
When you boast arguably the best player in the world in Cristiano Ronaldo, it's pretty difficult to not surround him with other world-class players—and that's exactly what Real Madrid has done.
Although there were rumors of CR7 jolting his mates Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema and heading back to Manchester United, it seems that he has decided against it, according to his agent Jorge Mendes—which is a very good thing.
That spells trouble for other La Liga and European teams, because these three are fantastic together, already winning the Champions League, Cope del Rey and UEFA Super Cup since Bale joined the squad before last season.
Already this year, the three have combined for 20 goals and seven assists, proving how well they perform together.
6. Cleveland Cavaliers
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Trio: LeBron James, Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving
The newest Big 3 in the NBA that everyone can't seem to stop talking about, the Cleveland Cavaliers might have just assembled the greatest three-headed monster in recent league history.
The one thing that's holding them back from being higher on this list, though? Well, no one really knows how LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving will actually play together once the games really start.
They've said the right things and have brought excitement to the preseason games thus far, but if they win anything less that 60 games in this first season together, some may honestly consider it a failed regular season—which will be erased if they win a title.
Who knows if they surpass the prowess of James' former three-headed monster on the Miami Heat with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, but with younger pieces and all the potential in the world, these Cavaliers could make four-straight NBA Finals trips and leave with four-straight rings.
That's how good these guys can be together—but only time will tell.
5. New England Patriots
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Trio: Tom Brady, Vince Wilfork, Bill Belichick
They may not be as dominant as they've been in the past, but you can definitely make the case that the New England Patriots still have one of the top 5 trios in sports—they have quarterback Tom Brady, defensive lineman Vince Wilfork and head coach Bill Belichick.
For instance, after getting blown out by the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday Night Football a couple of games ago—and everyone around the league freaked out—how did the Pats respond?
Simply by dominating and humiliating the previously unbeaten Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday Night Football, showing the entire league that they should still be thought of as a serious contender.
Whether or not you're a fan of New England or any of the guys in their trio, you have to recognize how great they've been over the years, winning three Super Bowls and going to five of them together (Wilfork joining them after the first two).
Any fan would take that track record.
4. Baltimore Orioles
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Trio: Nelson Cruz, Adam Jones, Chris Davis
While it always takes a total team effort for a club to reach the American League Championship Series—as the Baltimore Orioles have this season for the first time since 1997—one can't ignore how they really got there.
It was with a lot of muscle.
And a lot of that power was supplied by the Orioles' three-headed monster, Nelson Cruz, Adam Jones and Chris Davis, who combined to smash 95 home runs and drive in 276 RBI during the regular season.
Missing Davis due to a PED suspension for the past month or so, the O's continue to fly high, with Jones scoring four runs and Cruz blasting two homers and driving in five runs in the team's Division Series sweep of the Detroit Tigers.
If Baltimore is to seriously contend for a World Series title, these are the three who will take them there.
3. Seattle Seahawks
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Trio: Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch, Earl Thomas
Before everyone goes off on me and wonder why I included Seattle Seahawks All-Pro safety Earl Thomas in the team's trio over corner Richard Sherman, let me explain.
While Sherman is the best cornerback in the league, always up to the challenge to shutdown the opposing team's top wideout, it's Thomas who allows his teammate to take some chances he might otherwise not consider, acting as a security blanket in case Sherman does get beat.
Now that's out of the way, let's see why the offense is in good hands with quarterback Russell Wilson and running back Marshawn Lynch, shall we?
In addition to the team being 17-1 at home in the two seasons that Wilson has started—with one Super Bowl win—the pairing of Beast Mode and Danger Russ on the offensive side of the ball complement each other in a way that drives opposing defenses crazy.
Not only can Wilson beat you with his arm and Lynch bull you over with his tenacious running style, but the deception they have while running the read-option is about as deadly as anything.
If the Seahawks are to become the first team since the early-2000s New England Patriots to repeat as Super Bowl champs, these three will be the reason.
2. Chicago Blackhawks
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Trio: Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp
When a team wins two of the past five Stanley Cup titles—as the Chicago Blackhawks have—it usually means that they have some solid players leading them.
And thanks to Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Sharp the Blackhawks have exactly that.
While the Hawks failed to reach the Stanley Cup Finals last season—losing in seven games to the eventual champion L.A. Kings in the Conference Finals—they are primed to make more championship runs for years to come now that the front office locked up Kane and Toews to long-term deals this offseason.
If these three do what they did last year—where they had a combined 91 goals, 124 assists and 215 points—Chicago will again be in the Stanley Cup conversation.
1. San Antonio Spurs
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Trio: Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili
You can't argue with results, right?
While Tim Duncan has won five total NBA titles since entering the league as the No. 1 overall pick back in 1997, it wasn't until Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili were all together in 2002 that the three really became the gold standard for every professional sports franchise.
Winning four rings together, the San Antonio Spurs' three-headed monster can beat teams in a variety of ways, running on their opposition in a shootout, or slowing it down and breaking their opponents down defensively.
After going 62-20 and winning another NBA title this past season, the Spurs have now had 15 straight years of winning 50-plus games, and they have never been below the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference since drafting Duncan.
That's a dynasty if I've ever seen one.
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