Inspirational Basketball Quotes - Page 2

• The most important quality I look for in a player is accountability. You've got to be accountable for who you are. It's too easy to blame things on someone else.

  Lenny Wilkens

  Motivational, Basketball, Sports

  9 Copy quote

• Great players are willing to give up their own personal achievement for the achievement of the group. It enhances everybody.

  Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

  Motivational, Basketball, Giving Up

  39 Copy quote

• When I was young, I never wanted to leave the court until I got things exactly correct. My dream was to become a pro.

  Larry Bird

  Inspirational, Basketball, Dream

  26 Copy quote

• I try to penetrate the lane like Steve Nash, pass like Jason Kidd, and handle the ball like Allen Iverson. Remember, I said 'try to'.

  Chris Paul

  Sports, Perseverance, Trying

  Interview with Jon Robinson, www.ign.com. November 3, 2005.

  62 Copy quote

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• Concentration and mental toughness are the margins of victory.

  Bill Russell

  Basketball, Focus And Concentration, Victory

  83 Copy quote

• The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great in whatever they want to do.

  Kobe Bryant

  Badass, People, Inspire

  53 Copy quote

• If you're trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I've had them; everybody has had them

  Michael Jordan

  Basketball, Nba, Trying

  Michael Jordan (1994). “I can't accept not trying: Michael Jordan on the pursuit of excellence”

  14 Copy quote

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• Don't let what other people think decide who you are.

  Dennis Rodman

  Basketball, Thinking, People

  64 Copy quote

• I enjoy jokes, smiling, and making people smile. I may be a little different, but that's OK, who wants to be normal anyway?

  Tim Duncan

  Smile, People, May

  22 Copy quote

• Sometimes you learn more from losing than winning. Losing forces you to reexamine.

  Pat Summitt

  Basketball, Winning, Coaching

  Pat Summitt (1999). “Reach for the Summit”, p.194, Crown Business

  209 Copy quote

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• Never underestimate the heart of a champion.

  Rudy Tomjanovich

  Basketball, Sports, Motivation

  Rudy Tomjanovich (1997). “A Rocket at Heart: My Life and My Team”

  53 Copy quote

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• Competition is great for everyone. Sports can teach you so much at an early age, including camaraderie and sportsmanship. Competition aspect is something I've always been big on - I always wanted to compete in something. It was swimming for many years, then I moved on to basketball. I had to find a way to channel my competitive energy, so I'm lucky that basketball worked out for me.

  Tim Duncan

  Basketball, Sports, Swimming

  Interview with Josh Staph, www.stack.com. January 1, 2007.

  37 Copy quote

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• I know I'm never as good or bad as one single performance. I've never believed in my critics or my worshippers, and I've always been able to leave the game at the arena.

  Charles Barkley

  Motivational, Basketball, Games

  8 Copy quote

• There are plenty of teams in every sport that have great players and never win titles. Most of the time, those players aren't willing to sacrifice for the greater good of the team. The funny thing is, in the end, their unwillingness to sacrifice only makes individual goals more difficult to achieve. One thing I believe to the fullest is that if you think and achieve as a team, the individual accolades will take care of themselves. Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships.

  Michael Jordan

  Inspirational, Basketball, Sports

  75 Copy quote

• Morale and attitude are the fundamentals to success.

  Bud Wilkinson

  Basketball, Attitude, Coaching

  15 Copy quote
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  Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.

  Lou Holtz

  Inspirational, Life, Motivational

  563 Copy quote

• I've always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. I don't do things half-heartedly. Because I know if I do, then I can expect half-hearted results.

  Michael Jordan

  Motivational, Positive, Basketball

  Michael Jordan (1994). “I can't accept not trying: Michael Jordan on the pursuit of excellence”

  23 Copy quote

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• It is not what you teach, but what you emphasize.

  Don Meyer

  Basketball, Coaching, Teach

  7 Copy quote

• Great teamwork is the only way we create the breakthroughs that define our careers.

  Pat Riley

  Basketball, Teamwork, Motivational Sports

  Pat Riley (1993). “Winner Within Success”, Putnam Publishing Group

  32 Copy quote

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

  Jerry Tarkanian

  Basketball, Sports, Teamwork

  60 Copy quote

• You know, my family and friends have never been yes-men: 'Yes, you're doing the right thing, you're always right.' No, they tell me when I'm wrong, and that's why I've been able to stay who I am and stay humble.

  LeBron James

  Humble, Men, Who I Am

  5 Copy quote

• All really successful coaches have a system.

  Jim Valvano

  Basketball, Successful, Coaching

  8 Copy quote
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  Good teams become great ones when the members trust each other enough to surrender the Me for the We.

  Phil Jackson

  Basketball, Teamwork, Sports

  289 Copy quote

• Everybody on a championship team doesn't get publicity, but everyone can say he's a champion.

  Magic Johnson

  Inspiring, Basketball, Teamwork

  12 Copy quote

• Simplify the game as much as possible. When you add, you must subtract.

  Don Meyer

  Basketball, Games, Coaching

  8 Copy quote