Basketball Player Quotes

The best evaluation I can make of a player is to look in his eyes and see how scared they are.

Thank god, I'm not from this world.

A lot of times things get blown out of proportion in a negative light, especially in the NBA, ... But there are a lot of players in the NBA who really care about the community and want to use their basketball-playing ability for a good cause.

Sports are such a great teacher. I think of everything they've taught me: camaraderie, humility, how to resolve differences.

Success doesn't stop when you get there

I realize that I'm black, but I like to be viewed as a person, and this is everybody's wish.

I set another goal, a reasonable, manageable goal that I could realistically achieve if I worked hard enough. I approached everything step by step.

Excellence isn't a one-week or one-year ideal. It's a constant.

Do I need my number retired throughout the course of the league to acknowledge what I've done? No.

Being a leader, it's the art of trying to find the balance, the right times with each individual and what they need at that moment. It requires looking outward as opposed to looking inside.

Another day, another opportunity to prove everyone who doubts you wrong.

I focus on one thing and one thing only - that's trying to win as many championships as I can.

If nobody will help you do it alone!

There's been a lot of talk of me being a one-man show but that's simply not the case. We win games when I score 40 points and we've won when I score 10.

I don't want to be the next Michael Jordan, I only want to be Kobe Bryant.

We all fly. Once you leave the ground, you fly. Some people fly longer than others.

What is love? Love is playing every game as if it's your last!

Its better to shoot and miss, then to let time run out and wonder what if

All I wanted to do was to improve, to keep getting better.

It’s not a question of if we make the playoffs; we will. And when we get there, I have no fear of anyone.

This is an award I couldn't have won on my own. I can't thank these guys enough. These are my guys, these are my brothers.

If I thought of the number of people who were watching me as I got ready to shoot, I?d miss it.

I'm just so excited. We all are. We've been waiting for this [the gold medal] for years now and it's finally here. This meant so much. It just felt so good.

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'm here. I'm not going anywhere. No matter what the injury - unless it's completely debilitating - I'm going to be the same player I've always been. I'll figure it out. I'll make some tweaks, some changes, but I'm still coming.

When I got cut from the varsity team as a sophomore in high school, I learned something. I knew I never wanted to feel that bad again. I never wanted to have that taste in my mouth, that hole in my stomach. So I set a goal of becoming a starter on the varsity.

The game is my wife. It demands loyalty and responsibility, and it gives me back fulfillment and peace.

All I knew is that I NEVER wanted to be AVERAGE.

The Black Mamba collection of watches is me: It is my alter ego, so to speak. As I mentioned before, it is sharp, cutting edge and sleek which are characteristics I try to apply when I’m out there on the basketball court.

He shouldn't have been in the NBA, but we were too cheap to pay for a point guard.

I've got four dogs, and I just don't do dog doo. I'm a diva when it comes to that.

Don't let them drag you down by rumors just go with what you believe in.

I've failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying.

You believe an eye for an eye until you are put in that situation. If they kill those guys, it really doesn't mean much to me. My father is gone.

I enjoy playing at the heart of it is just a kid who really loves playing the game of basketball.

Always turn a negative situation into a positive situation.

When I lose the sense of motivation and the sense to prove something as a basketball player, it's time for me to move away from the game.

A coach is someone that sees beyond your limits and guides you to greatness!

I know what's within me even if you can't see it yet...I have something more important than courage, I have patience. I will become what I know I am.

I think the players win the championship, and the organization has something to do with it, don't get me wrong. But don't try to put the organization above the players.

The best come from the worst

It doesn't matter to me what place I get traded to. If I was traded someplace - I'd play anywhere.

I've been watching Messi for some time now, and his ability to decide games and keep possession of the ball is amazing.

The thing that's most enjoyable to me is not actually beating someone [in the game]. It's the process of coming up with the blueprint of beating that I enjoy. That's a huge flip, so for me I enjoy building. I enjoy coming up.

I love the weather, I love my '63 droptop Impala, I love the 405, and I love my guys.

I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot... when you think about the consequences you always think of a negative result.

I had some shots that I felt like I should've made; I just didn't make them. I'm not going to shoot the ball great every night.

Other than my parents, no one had a bigger influence on my life than Coach Smith. He was more than a coach – he was my mentor, my teacher, my second father. Coach was always there for me whenever I needed him and I loved him for it. In teaching me the game of basketball, he taught me about life. My heart goes out to Linnea and their kids. We've lost a great man who had an incredible impact on his players, his staff and the entire UNC family.

I'm focused on the task that lies ahead for us.

I play to win, whether during practice or a real game. And I will not let anything get in the way of me and my competitive enthusiasm to win.

What people see on court is another side of me; it's not me.

Failure builds muscle,determination, and dreams.

Can I still dunk... Are you stupid?

I wouldn't say I'm a ball hog. I'm a shooter.

If you do the work you get rewarded. There are no shortcuts in life.

It really doesn't matter to me. We're just talking about clothes. I can understand what the NBA is trying to do. I love my sneakers, but we're just talking about clothes.

Winners don't just learn the fundamentals, they master them. You have to monitor your fundamentals constantly because the only thing that changes will be your attention to them.

Twitter is great to connect with fans and be transparent. I enjoy that aspect about it. But really, I'm still trying to figure it out.

I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying.

I'm just right down the middle, man, ... It doesn't matter to me. I'd love him (Phil Jackson) as a coach. It doesn't matter to me. If they want him here, he'll be here. If he wants to come, he'll come, he'll coach and we'll go from there.