Basketball Quotes

[The NBA] used to be a small band of basketball groupies. Now there are a lot more corporate-type people working in the league.

To me, the big thing in being a successful team is repetition of what you're doing, either by word of mouth, blackboard, or specifically by work on the field. You repeat, repeat, repeat as a unit.

I came up in a small town ghetto and I never did think I'd be a celebrity or famous athlete, I was just loving to play the game of basketball. And I worked hard at everything I did.

Basketball is a game of sacrificing yourself for the next guy, being a team that takes good shots, and taking the right shots

You aren't going to win championships unless you make layups and free throws.

I wasn't a bad guy. I just wanted God to give me a second chance.

Have fun doing whatever it is that you desire to accomplish. Learn it one step at a time, emphasizing the fundamentals, and do it because you love it, not because it's work.

It doesn't cost nothing to be nice to people

To me, the most enjoyable part is the practice and preparation

If you have talent with teamwork, you've got a chance to be a championship team.

We win because we play together as a team.

I've always been a firm believer in mind over matter. If you don't believe you can achieve, your body will start to believe this and you'll be stuck.

Unless you plan to out-rebound and out-shoot everyone you play, then you better learn to handle the ball.

People have been killing because of racial differences since the time of Adam and Eve, but in this country racism has been primarily aimed at African Americans.

This must be how the guys in Space Jam felt when MJ gave them their powers back through that old basketball.

Make every day your masterpiece.

If I weren't earning $3 million a year to dunk a basketball, most people on the street would run in the other direction if they saw me coming.

I always believe someone somewhere is working harder than me and that motivates me to work harder, give 100%.

Nothing has any power over me other than that which I give it through my conscious thoughts.

It didn't matter how good I was. It was always, 'You're a girl. You can't play with the guys.' It's always been motivation for me.

I don't just try to score. The challenge is elevating my teammates to be able to win a championship.

You got to believe in yourself. Hell, I believe I'm the best-looking guy in the world and I might be right.

You can't defer if you're the person who's in the leadership position.

Everyone needs a coach. It doesn't matter whether you're a basketball player, a tennis player, a gymnast or a bridge player.

Basketball is sharing.

It's not so important who starts the game but who finishes it.

Use different basketball offensive alignments to cause confusion for the other team.

Every time I think about changing a diaper, I run a little bit harder and a little bit faster to make sure I can afford a nanny until my daughter's old enough to take care of that herself.

It's hard for young players to see the big picture. They just see three or four years down the road.

Basketball is a simple game. Your goal is penetration, get the ball close to the basket, and there are three ways to do that. Pass, dribble and offensive rebound.

Playoff basketball ... you've got to treat every possession like it's your last.

Other people go to the office. I get to coach. I know I've been blessed.

The best part is if you dunk on someone at home and they show it on the replay!

An acrobatic dunk will make it onto Sports Center. A simple, unspectacular bounce pass in the rhythm of the offense will not. System basketball has been replaced by players who want to be the system.

You take those little rascals, talk to them good, pat them on the back, let them think they are good, and they will go out and beat the biguns.

You can pick captains, but you can't pick leaders. Whoever controls the locker room controls the team

To be a team, you must be a family.

There is nothing more important than rebounding... don't just give it lip service.

My secret? See it, and stay focused on it.

When you're a coach you've got to go up the ladder, you've got to be ready to travel. That's the nature of coaching

If you don't stick to simplicity, you'll die a horrible death.

Switch if you have to! It's not the mismatch that beats you, it's the open shot!

Anyone can win a slam-dunk contest. The real Superman is dead. He was assassinated by Pat Riley. I'm the Big Cactus now and ready to roll again.

No rebounds, no rings.

Confidence allows you to progress in something you're attempting to accomplish, whether it's playing basketball or baseball or whether it's trying to succeed in business.

The basketball court for me, during a game, is the most peaceful place I can imagine. On the basketball court, I worry about nothing. When I'm out there, no one can bother me.

Left hand, right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious.

Everybody's talking trash these days, so why not keep quiet?

Each time I step on the basketball court, I never know what will happen. I live for the moment. I play for the moment.

I don't really have anything to say. Basketball is not a game that you can play with your mouth. It needs action to prove yourself.