Inspirational basketball Quotes

You play with your soul as well as your body.

— Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Morale and attitude are the fundamentals to success.

— Bud Wilkinson

Criticize on defense and encourage on offense.

— John Brady

Play the game with a smile.

— Earl Monroe

One man cannot make a team.

— Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

All really successful coaches have a system.

— Jim Valvano

Shout praise and whisper criticism.

— Don Meyer

You don't have to live anybody else's story.

— Stephen Curry

Fans never fall asleep at our games, because they're afraid they might get hit by a pass.

— George Raveling

A person really doesn't become whole, until he becomes a part of something that's bigger than himself.

— Jim Valvano

They said playing basketball would kill me. Well, not playing basketball was killing me.

— Magic Johnson

Champions play as they practice. Create a consistency of excellence in all your habits.

— Mike Krzyzewski

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

— Don Meyer

Sometimes you come up against a mountain and you end up making the mountain seem bigger than God.

— Jeremy Lin

I'm not the guy who's afraid of failure. I like to take risks, take the big shot and all that.

— Stephen Curry

He who controlleth the backboard, controlleth the game.

— Adolph Rupp

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…

— LeBron James

The most important quality I look for in a player is accountability. You've got to be accountable for who you are. It's…

— Lenny Wilkens

In all the research you do as a coach, studying other coaches and championship-type situations, you find that all those teams combined…

— Pat Riley

I don't try to get players emotionally up for a game; it creates too many peaks and valleys... I strive for even…

— Denny Crum

I would tell players to relax and never think about what's at stake. Just think about the basketball game. If you start…

— Michael Jordan

You never make any of the shots you never take. 87% of the ones you do take, you'll miss too. I make…

— Larry Bird

You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at…

— Michael Jordan

The best teams have chemistry. They communicate with each other and they sacrifice personal glory for a common goal.

— Dave DeBusschere

Practice habits were crucial to my development in basketball. I didn't play against the toughest competition in high school, but one reason…

— Larry Bird

I was shocked cause I didn't even know that they made my jersey. I didn't know that they made it so fast,…

— Jeremy Lin

Competition is great for everyone. Sports can teach you so much at an early age, including camaraderie and sportsmanship. Competition aspect is…

— Tim Duncan

I have self-doubt. I have insecurity. I have fear of failure. I have nights when I show up at the arena and…

— Kobe Bryant

I've failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed. Some people want it to…

— Michael Jordan

When you watch the game, be a student of the game.

— Don Meyer

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

— Dennis Rodman

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

— Don Meyer

We win because we play together as a team.

— John Havlicek

It's not how big you are, it's how big you play

— John Wooden

Basketball doesn't build character it reveals it.

— James Naismith

Any American boy can be a basketball star if he grows up, up, up.

— Bill Vaughan

Systems win! Believe in your system, and then sell it to your players.

— Billy Donovan

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

— Magic Johnson

Every time I rise up, I have confidence that I'm going to make it.

— Stephen Curry

If you want team play, you must stress defense. Defense makes players unselfish.

— John Brady