quotations about basketball
Basketball is a sport that involves the subtle interweaving of players at full speed to the point where they are thinking and moving as one.
PHIL JACKSON
Sacred Hoops
Coaching is easy. Winning is the hard part.
ELGIN BAYLOR
The Sporting News, 1977
Basketball allowed me to revere my father without him knowing what I was up to. I took up basketball as a form of homage and mimicry.
PAT CONROY
My Losing Season: A Memoir
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
The single most important aspect of coaching is running effective practices.
BOB KNIGHT
"33 Basketball Coaching Points from Bob Knight", The Coaching Toolbox
I only want to play basketball, and play it well and be happy about it. But I realize that with being famous comes a lot of demands.
YAO MING
interview, Sep. 3, 2002
Apparently I need shoes with a 'swoosh' on the side if I'm to continue playing basketball.
BETH FANTASKEY
Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side
You can't win without the ball.
RED AUERBACH
ESPN, Jun. 2005
The only important statistic is the final score.
BILL RUSSELL
attributed, Boston Celtics IQ: The Ultimate Test of True Fandom
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
Basketball is a beautiful game when the five players on the court play with one heartbeat. Passing, screening, cutting, and movement away from the ball: The game can be almost balletic in its grace and simplicity.
DEAN SMITH
The Carolina Way: Leadership Lessons from a Life in Coaching
Any American boy can be a basketball star if he grows up, up, up.
BILL VAUGHN
attributed, 20,000 Quips & Quotes
My thoughts were always that that night was the most important game in the world. Everybody in the world was watching that one game. And I had to be the best player on the court and win that game that night. That was my mentality, and it stuck with me all the way through my career.
LARRY BIRD
interview, ESPN, December 6, 2016
Don't complicate winning.
BOB KNIGHT
"33 Basketball Coaching Points from Bob Knight", The Coaching Toolbox
At any point during practice, call a timeout. Huddle the players and give them 4 or 5 specific instructions. Then send them back on the court. Wait 15 seconds and then ask them to write down the 4 or 5 things you asked them to do. It is scary how little they will recall.
BOB KNIGHT
"33 Basketball Coaching Points from Bob Knight", The Coaching Toolbox
As I got better and better, there were a lot of double teams, and I drew a lot of defenders, so I had to learn how to pass the ball, and get it off to my teammates, because the more people that came to defend me, that means there are more openings for other players.
YAO MING
interview, Nov. 14, 2003
The idea is not to block every shot. The idea is to make your opponent believe that you might block every shot.
BILL RUSSELL
attributed, Uncommon: Finding Your Path to Significance
I decided one day early on in high school that I wanted to be great at basketball, not just a good basketball player. I would go to the elementary school by my house and shoot thousands of shots all day, every day.
GILBERT ARENAS
Daily Texan, Mar. 29, 2001
I'll do whatever it takes to win games, whether it's sitting on a bench waving a towel, handing a cup of water to a teammate, or hitting the game-winning shot.
KOBE BRYANT
attributed, Team Work: Rediscovering the Essence of Basketball
Teams share the burden and divide the grief.
DOUG SMITH
attributed, Teamwork and Teamplay: Games and Activities for Building and Training Teams