Sports Star Love Triangles Nobody Was Ready For

Every sport has its fair share of unwritten rules. For example, while the real rules of the NBA are to be respected by every player, there are also unwritten rules that most players know to follow, like not wearing a rival's shoe during a game. In an article titled "The Politics of Kicks," Golden State Warriors player Draymond Green shared that he would wear Lebron James' signature shoes because they were "comfortable." However, as he entered his second and third season, he made a change. "I'm battling with this dude. I can't wear these shoes anymore when I'm going up against him," he acknowledged.

While this rule — at the end of the day — is up to the player, there is one unwritten rule across just about every sport that should never be broken. Players should never find themselves involved with another teammate's wife or girlfriend. Athletes on the same team form special bonds and that can be ruined if one teammate decides to scandalously destroy a marriage or relationship. 

Unfortunately, this rule has reportedly been broken numerous times throughout the years, with tabloids writing up shocking stories of teammates caught in love triangles. Let's take a closer look at the teammates who once shared a love of the game, only to find themselves in nasty feuds for hooking up with another player's significant other.

One of the most shocking stories to come out from the world of soccer was the infamous affair between celebrated Manchester United footballer Ryan Giggs and his brother's wife, Natasha. According to The Sun (via the Daily Mail), in 2011, Natasha revealed that she had an eight-year affair with Ryan, which resulted in his brother, Rhodri, divorcing his wife in 2013. However, Ryan's wife stayed by his side until they separated in 2017. 

According to the Daily Mail, Natasha ousted Ryan after he tried to keep another affair with "Big Brother" star Imogen Thomas quiet. She also shockingly revealed that she aborted Ryan's baby before she was going to marry Rhodri. The brothers' fallout resulted in the pair not speaking to each other for years. Even the Giggs' father, famed rugby player Danny Wilson, could not come to terms with his son's scandalous affair, telling The Sun, "I am ashamed of him. I can't even bring myself to use his name — I refer to him as the ex-footballer." 

The Mirror reported that the brothers have yet to reconcile, with Rhodri releasing a book about the affair — which would leave no detail out. Rhodri shared, "People have always asked me to do a book for the last 10 years. It's just a bad thing to happen, so I'm just going all guns blazing now ... You can't do what you've done and expect me to lie down and be quiet about it. I'm gonna piss people off."

Former Denver Broncos football player Brennan Clay made sports headlines when he sent out a tweet in 2014 telling his thousands of Twitter followers that his wife was cheating on him with former Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray. Although the two men did not play on the same team in the NFL, they were both teammates at the University of Oklahoma. Clay even once told TMZ that Murray was "the person who I looked up to the most as a running back and as a friend."

According to Fox19, Clay's since-deleted tweet called out his wife, Gina D'Agostini, and read, "So DeMarco Murray was having an affair with my wife .. I'm done .. @demarcomurray and @gina_edagos0126 .. 1 has a baby momma and she has 2 kids." TMZ reported that Clay was in the middle of filing for divorce from D'Agostini, but later took back his accusations, posting a photo laying on top of her and tweeting, "Jumped to a conclusion that wasn't true .. can't judge a situation without knowing all the facts .. I apologize .. "

Murray did not respond to Clay's affair accusations and went on to marry Heidi Mueller in 2015. According to Clay's Twitter, he appears to have divorced D'Agostini after all, and remarried in 2021 to a woman named Lindsey Diann. 

NBA stars Jason Kidd, Jamal Mashburn, and Jim Jackson appeared to bring life back to the Dallas Mavericks in the mid-'90s and the trio even had a nickname — "the three J's," per The Dallas Morning News. However, tension grew among the men, especially between Kidd and Jackson, with rumors that it was because of Toni Braxton. 

Braxton was already an R&B superstar at the time, having released her debut album that featured her hit songs, "You Mean the World to Me" and "Breathe Again," and her second album, "Secrets," which featured the mega-hit "Un-Break My Heart." So, were these two NBA stars vying for her attention? According to CBS News, rumors looked that way after Braxton met Kidd in Atlanta, but left with Jackson, causing a feud between the athletes. Kidd insisted that either he or Jackson be traded, and, by 1996, Kidd was traded to the Phoenix Suns, while Jackson would also be traded to the New Jersey Nets in 1997. The Mavs also decided to part ways with Mashburn that same year, and he was traded to the Miami Heat. "The three J's" was over. 

Mashburn spoke about the rumors that caused all three men to be traded, sharing with KRLD-FM in 2015 (via The Dallas Morning News), "She's a beautiful woman, but I think it did cost us because of egos, being so young, not having a lot of direction and leadership on the Dallas Mavericks at that particular time."

Former NHL player Sean Avery's disparaging remarks about an ex-girlfriend not only led to a six-game suspension from the Dallas Stars in 2008, it ultimately left him without a team after the Stars let him go, per ESPN. Avery, who was known for his hot temper and tell-it-like-it-is attitude, split from actor Elisha Cuthbert and he did not hold back on how he felt when she began dating NHL player Dion Phaneuf, whom she later married in 2013. 

During an interview, Avery was heard stating (via ESPN), "I just want to comment on how it's become like a common thing in the NHL for guys to fall in love with my sloppy seconds. I don't know what that's about, but enjoy the game tonight." Avery had also previously dated model Rachel Hunter, who had moved on with NHL athlete Jarret Stoll.

In his memoir, "Offside: My Life Crossing the Line" (via TSN), Avery shared that he wasn't sorry for his comments about Cuthbert. "What I'm supposed to say is I regret it. What I feel is I said something terribly distasteful. But they are just words. I have made amends with that situation. I don't think I could take it back. If I could, I would choose not to hurt people again. But I just can't say 'I wish I didn't say it.' I own it,'" he shared. In 2015, Avery married model Hilary Rhoda and in 2020, they welcomed a son named Nash. 

Former Detriot Tigers first baseman Prince Fielder made headlines after it was confirmed that he filed for divorce from his wife, Chanel Fielder, in May 2013. According to ESPN, Fielder was not playing at his best, and his former teammate, Torii Hunter, told a radio show, "Us as players, we know what's really going on and we appreciate him going out there every day." While going through a divorce can certainly hurt a player's performance, rumors appeared to be spreading that his divorce was caused by his wife's affair with a Tigers' teammate. 

247 Sports reported that Fielder's wife was having an affair with Avasail Garcia, an outfielder who was with the Tigers for two years. After learning about the affair, a fight broke out between Garcia and teammate Miguel Cabrera. Coincidentally, Garcia was traded by the Tigers to the White Sox and Fielder got traded to the Texas Rangers the same year the divorce was filed. 

Despite their pending divorce, Fielder and his wife reconciled in 2014, per Heavy. Chanel is very active on Instagram, and there are tons of photos showing the couple attending events together and on family vacations with their two sons. 

MLB players Dennis Eckersley and Rick Manning were both selected by the Cleveland Indians during the 1972 MLB draft. Like any other teammates, the men became close, until Eckersley was traded to the Boston Red Sox and learned that his best friend was having an affair with his wife. 

According to Sports Illustrated, the same day Eckersley learned he was being traded in March 1978, his wife Denise dropped a bombshell when she admitted to the affair. Eckersley shared, "I was hurt at first, but Denise and I were kids when we got married. We were 18 and didn't know anything. What hurt was being separated from Maddie [his daughter]." Former Red Sox pitcher Bruce Hurst was surprised at how well Eckersley took the news, especially when the Sox had to play the Indians. "Every time Manning came to plate against us, I used to fume and think, I hate that man. But Eck never did hate him. He still considered him a friend. I don't know how he did that." According to Yardbaker, Manning and Denise married, but later divorced.  

Years after the affair, Eckersley, who became an MLB analyst after retiring, poked fun at his past during a game between the Red Sox and the New York Yankees. When asked if he had ever been close to another player during a rivalry, Eckersley said, "I don't know about a rivalry. I had a real close friend who stole my wife. How about that?" 

In 2006, NFL quarterback Tom Brady took his then-girlfriend, model Gisele Bundchen, by surprise when he told her his ex-girlfriend, Bridget Moynahan, was pregnant with their son. Luckily, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB and the former Victoria's Secret model were able to work on their relationship, even though Brady was preparing to become a father with his and Moynahan's baby.

According to Us Weekly, Brady and Moynahan dated for two years, but split in 2006. He then began dating Bundchen, but weeks into their romance, he learned Moynahan was pregnant. Brady told Howard Stern in April 2020, "I found out a lot about Gisele through this experience, and she found out a lot about me dealing with a[n uneasy] situation." Moynahan gave birth to their son, Jack, in 2007 and told Harper's Bazaar at the time, "Going through that traumatic time of being heartbroken and then being pregnant turned my whole life upside down and ... just knocked the wind out of me."

Brady and Bundchen tied the knot in 2009 and welcomed two kids — a son, Benjamin, and a daughter, Vivian. However, Moynahan, who married investment banker Andrew Frankel in 2015, shared they are one big blended family. "Tom and I made a decision to raise a child together and we both found partners that not only supported us in raising that child but also loved our child as if he was their own ... My son is surrounded by love," she told People.