Be at your best when your best is needed.

I continually stress to my players that all I expect from them at practice and in the games is their maximum effort.

The purpose is to help, to prevent, to correct, to improve, rather than to punish. Criticism is not meant to punish, but rather to correct something that is preventing better results. The only goal is improvement.

Lead, don't drive. And give credit. Don't blame. If an officer on your team suggested something and it worked well, give them credit. If it doesn't work well, you take the blame because you made the decision.

I discovered early on that the player who learned the fundamentals of basketball is going to have a much better chance of succeeding and rising through the levels of competition than the player who was content to do things his own way. A player should be interested in learning why things are done a certain way. The reasons behind the teaching often go a long way to helping develop the skill.

Five years from now, you’re the same person except for the people you’ve met and the books you’ve read.

It is difficult for young players to learn - because of the great emphasis on records - but, ideally, the joy and frustration of sport should come from the performance itself, not the score. While he is playing, the worst thing a player can think about in terms of concentration - and therefore of success - is losing. The next worst is winning.