BASKETBALL QUOTES II

quotations about basketball

You have to be able to center yourself, to let all of your emotions go. Don't ever forget that you play with your soul as well as your body.

KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR

attributed, You Vs You: Sports Psychology for Life


There is nothing better than being out there when the game is on the line.

LARRY BIRD

The Sacramento Bee, February 3, 1998

Tags: Larry Bird


More games are lost by dumb than are won by smart.

BOB KNIGHT

"33 Basketball Coaching Points from Bob Knight", The Coaching Toolbox


Failure is good. It's fertilizer. Everything I've learned about coaching, I've learned from making mistakes.

RICK PITINO

attributed, Teamthink


Not only is there more to life than basketball, there's a lot more to basketball than basketball.

PHIL JACKSON

Sacred Hoops


In basketball -- as in life -- true joy comes from being fully present in each and every moment, not just when things are going your way.

PHIL JACKSON

Sacred Hoops


I was always driven on the basketball court. I always wanted to win every game I played in, sometimes too much. When you're out on the playground just playing, and you're scraping, fighting, and do whatever you can to win the game. When it's all over with, you're friends, and I'd think, 'Why did I get like that?' That's the way I've always been.

LARRY BIRD

interview, The Undefeated, October 9, 2019

Tags: Larry Bird


The goal is to make practice more difficult, physically and mentally, than anything your players will face during a game.

BOB KNIGHT

"33 Basketball Coaching Points from Bob Knight", The Coaching Toolbox


We have a great bunch of outside shooters. Unfortunately, all our games are played indoors.

WELDON DREW

The Michigan Journal, 1987


Don't let winning make you soft. Don't let losing make you quit.

LARRY BIRD

attributed, 1001 Motivational Messages and Quotations for Athletes and Coaches


Basketball is a team game. But that doesn't mean all five players should take the same amount of shots.

DEAN SMITH

attributed, "501 Awesome Basketball Quotes", Basketball for Coaches


We have a practical rule in our game: when you stop the basketball, when it resides in your presence and you hold it for longer than two counts, you've destroyed our rhythm. When the ball is in your hands, you become the focal point. And when you become the focus, our system breaks down. It's that simple. Suddenly the defense can catch up, and the spacing is destroyed. So it's the unselfish players--players who are more interested in reading what's happening and keeping the flow going on the floor--who are the most valuable players that you have.

PHIL JACKSON

attributed, Team Work: Rediscovering the Essence of Basketball


The secret is to have eight great players and four others who will cheer like crazy.

JERRY TARKANIAN

attributed, Winning Words


The best basketball announcer is one who allows you to close your eyes.

LARRY BIRD

Esquire, Sep. 2008


Any American boy can be a basketball star if he grows up, up, up.

BILL VAUGHN

attributed, 20,000 Quips & Quotes


Basketball is like most other things: if your basics are off, nothing else is really going to help you improve.

GREG DUTCHER

Killing Calvinism


When playing vs. man to man, the defense decides who guards who. When playing against zone, the offense decides who guards who.

BOB KNIGHT

"33 Basketball Coaching Points from Bob Knight", The Coaching Toolbox


Don't complicate winning.

BOB KNIGHT

"33 Basketball Coaching Points from Bob Knight", The Coaching Toolbox


Defense should be played with your feet and your brain, not your hands.

BOB KNIGHT

"33 Basketball Coaching Points from Bob Knight", The Coaching Toolbox


Most important ingredient to winning: no personal agendas. The commitment has to be 'us' driven not 'me' driven.

KEVIN EASTMAN

attributed, "501 Awesome Baketball Quotes", Basketball for Coaches