Popular quotes about Basketball! Wisdom and inspiration are here! | page 38
I was a man who played basketball and after I played basketball and before I played basketball I was going to be a psychologist, whereas most people who play their occupation is their definition - and then when they stop doing who they are, they become nothing.
John AmaechiBasketball, in America, is like a culture. It is like a foreigner learning a new language. It is difficult to learn foreign languages and it will also be difficult for me to learn the culture for basketball here.
Yao MingA big market is something that doesn't really concern me too much. It's cool to think about, it's good for off-the-court deals. But I'm more of a basketball player. That's what I want to be known as. And this is the best place for me to play basketball. I'm glad I'm here.
Kevin DurantLike a versatile baller, George Dohrmann swings seamlessly from position to position: investigative journalist, social critic, gifted storyteller. The result is a gem of a book that addresses THE question central to contemporary basketball: how does such an unseemly culture spring from such an essentially beautiful game? You'll come away rooting harder than ever for the kids and harder than ever against the basketball profiteers.
L. Jon WertheimI grew up in a small town in Illinois, and my dad was a basketball coach. Thanks to him, I have excellent fundamentals in both basketball and baseball.
Nick OffermanBasketball has always been a sport I loved and grew up playing. For me, it was one of those things that... I guess baseball was just in my genes a little bit. I have a lot of cousins that played baseball. Basketball is not an easy sport - you definitely got to be gifted to play that game. I felt like I was pretty good at it, but my ability was better in baseball.
Dellin BetancesNo player in the NBA was born wanting to play basketball. The desire to play ball or to read must be planted. The last 25 years of research show that reading aloud to a child is the oldest, cheapest and must successful method of instilling that desire. Shooting baskets with a child creates a basketball player; reading to a child creates a reader.
Jim TreleaseGrowing up, I played about every sport imaginable except soccer and hockey. I've always had a passion for basketball. I remember actually playing basketball when I was two or three years old. The time I knew that I could really take my game to the next level.
Dwight HowardThere is no doubt in my mind and I know in my time, there will be a Canadian basketball player playing for Toronto Raptors, 100%
Masai UjiriBasketball is my refuge, my sanctuary. I go back to being a kid on the playground. When I get here, it's all good.
Kobe BryantWhy don't they allow professional wrestling at the Olympics? They allow pro basketball players and hockey players. Olympic pro wrestling would be awesome. The team from Mexico could wear those Mr. X masks. The French wrestler could hit his opponent with a baguette. Or perhaps just surrender.
Craig FergusonOn an awards-show day, I can play basketball, go in, take a shower and put on a tux - it takes me three minutes to put on a tux - and be out the door in 15 minutes.
George ClooneyTennis was always there for me, which was lucky. I would go play baseball, basketball, football, hang with my brother, do whatever, and at the end of the day I'd come back and say, 'Hey, Mom, would you hit 15 minutes worth of balls with me?'
Jimmy ConnorsI can see why fans don't like to watch pro basketball. I don't, either. It's not exciting.
Larry BirdMy whole family likes to play basketball. George II plays for his high school team and George III and George IV and George V are going to be good players. One day we're going to have a team and call it Georgetown.
George ForemanWhen I went blind at 13, I realized that I wasn't going to be a good baseball or basketball player like I enjoyed before. It forced me to look beyond the obvious, to things that I could still do well.
Erik WeihenmayerBasketball is an intricate, high-speed game filled with split-second, spontaneous decisions. But that spontaneity is possible only when everyone first engages in hours of highly repetitive and structured practice--perfecting their shooting, dribbling, and passing and running plays over and over again--and agrees to play a carefully defined role on the court. This is the critical lesson of improve, too, and it is also a key to understanding a puzzle of Millennium Challenge: spontaneity isn't random.
Malcolm GladwellMy whole career has been trying to please people in basketball. Now it's time to please myself.
Candace ParkerBasketball also helps you learn to move your feet by playing defense and guarding guys, and that all carries over to playing football with staying square and having good footwork.
Calvin PryorIf parents are aiming at choosing children who will be good athletes, or great musicians, or who will get into Ivy League schools, or who will be tall enough to make the basketball team, then there is a danger that the life of the child will bear the burden of that expectation; and the risk of disappointment and the cost of disappointment will be even higher than they are now, and even now they can be considerable.
Michael SandelI played in Joe Louis in a playoff game. I played there when the roof caved in for half a season. The facility is great for basketball because it goes straight up, so you feel like the fans are on top of you.
Bill LaimbeerHip-hop culture itself has completely consumed everything involved in entertainment. When you think about basketball like the way those guys dress; I don't know if you notice but people care about how you dress these days.
Ryan MontgomeryMaybe itโs my own fault. Maybe I led you to believe it was easy when it wasnโt. Maybe I made you think my highlights started at the free throw line, and not in the gym. Maybe I made you think that every shot I took was a game winner. That my game was built on flash, and not fire. Maybe itโs my fault that you didnโt see that failure gave me strength; that my pain was my motivation. Maybe I led you to believe that basketball was a God given gift, and not something I worked for every single day of my life. Maybe I destroyed the game. Or maybe youโre just making excuses.
Michael JordanHell, I'm going to play pro basketball. I'm going to maybe be famous. I'm going to write books.
John Edgar WidemanI like basketball, and I've been to three games, which is so much more fun than seeing it on TV, I think.
Heidi KlumBut basketball was always something I was good at, that I was passionate about. I just didn't have the confidence to play in front of people at the time, at that early age. Now, I feel like I'm ready to play in front of people and play on the big stage.
Lil BAfricans are not as tall as northern Europeans. But Manute Vol and other sports figures in basketball and football receive a lot of press coverage.
Richard H. SteckelI disobeyed a basic basketball rule and never boxed out. I figured that if I had the inside position I had enough of an advantage to just go get the ball. And coaches left me alone because I got it.
Dolph SchayesIf you're playing basketball with someone who's better than you, you have to get better or else it's no fun
Jason BehrMy sporting hero was Drazen Petrovic, the NBA basketball player, who was killed in a car accident in 1993. He was a good friend, an unbelievable player, and I dedicated my Wimbledon win to him.
Goran IvanisevicYou can't not be into basketball and grow up in Chicago or live in L.A., because people are so fanatical about the teams. You know what's going on with the games even if you don't watch.
Virginia MadsenI got on the scale and I weighed around 203. I'm only 5'7. I was about to turn 30, and I wasn't active anymore. So I started working with a nutritionist and a trainer. I played basketball twice a week. And soon it all just became a habit for me. I became addicted to something good for a change.
Jerry FerraraThere are some rappers out there that I listen to, that I'm like: "You are really good but you could be like the Michael Jordan of rap if you applied yourself." There's a lot of people who are better at basketball than Michael Jordan, but Michael Jordan just wanted to be Michael Jordan, more.
Donald GloverI'm a Christian first. I'm a family guy second. As much as I like coaching, as much as I like basketball, it's third, fourth, or fifth down the line.
Steve AlfordWe have to move the meter in sports in Africa, especially basketball. With the growth of the NBA globally, we have to figure out more ways to develop facilities, coaching, leagues, and youth development in Africa. The talent is incredible. Especially physically. How do we get the youth to start playing at an early age just like in soccer? The future is bright. We now have an NBA office in Africa, we have legends and Hall of Famers, we have African assistant coaches, front office members, and some prominent African players over the last 10 years. So we must plan well for the next 10.
Masai UjiriIn football, there were drinks available everywhere you looked. On a golf tournament, you could find one free anywhere you wanted it. In tennis and NBA basketball, everybody had a hospitality suite, and so you could go there and load up if you wanted to.
Pat SummerallStanding on that platform, I said a silent prayer. I thanked God for giving me the strength and the opportunity to come back, to play basketball again, and to be part of that whole magnificent Olympic experience. It's a memory I will always cherish.
Magic JohnsonI could've played basketball, but my mind was on baseball. I didn't know what I was in for. In high school it was a matter of talent. No one told you what to do.
Eric DavisI experienced a lot of spiritual growth when I started traveling to Europe and playing basketball. I saw that just because I was away from home didn't mean Jesus wasn't with me. He is everywhere and you can see signs of Him in the most remote places in the world through people who don't even speak your language. Jesus is universal.
DeLisha Milton-JonesThe best part of basketball, for those people on the inside, is the bus going to the airport after you've won a game on an opponent's floor. It's been a very tough battle. And preferably, in the playoffs. And that feeling that you have, together as a group, having gone to an opponent's floor and won a very good victory, is as about as high as you can get.
Phil Jackson