--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When asked if he was a basketball player…" description: "\"When asked if he was a basketball player he replied No I clean giraffe ears.\" — Elvin Hayes" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d81/elvin-hayes-107630_ball-player_when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player_2626841.jpg" --- # When asked if he was a basketball player he replied No I… ![“When asked if he was a basketball player he replied No I clean giraffe ears.” quote by Elvin Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d81/elvin-hayes-107630_ball-player_when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player_2626841.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d81/elvin-hayes-107630_ball-player_when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player_2626841.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d81/elvin-hayes-107630_ball-player_when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player_2626841.jpg) > “When asked if he was a basketball player he replied No I clean giraffe ears.” [Elvin Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvin-hayes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He gives a surreal, humorous answer, deflecting the basketball question with absurdity. **In simple terms:** Uses absurdity to avoid answering directly. Key Takeaway Embrace humor in unexpected contexts. Themes humor absurdity deflection identity communication Mood playful lighthearted Type humorous personal When to use this quote - sports interviews - public speaking - social media memes Key Concepts psychology linguistics performance art Questions to Reflect On - How does humor change perception? - When is absurdity effective? A Different Perspective May be seen as evasive rather than insightful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Asked Basketball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asked-basketball-2157095/) [Ball player](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ball-player/) [Basketball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basketball/) [Basketball player](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basketball-player/) [Clean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clean/) [Clean Giraffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clean-giraffe-2157096/) [Ears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ears/) [Football](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/football/) [Giraffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giraffe/) [Giraffe Ears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giraffe-ears-2157094/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Player](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/player/) [Player Replied](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/player-replied-561685/) [Sports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sports/) ## Related quotes > [If I asked you something about basketball and you don't really know about basketball and you try to talk it and fake it, I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chamillionaire/if-i-asked-you-something-about-basketball-and-you-don-t-really-know/) [Chamillionaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chamillionaire/) > [I said, 'You missed practice yesterday didn't you?' The player replied, 'No coach, not a bit.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-lombardi/i-said-you-missed-practice-yesterday-didn-t-you-the-player-replied-no/) [Vince Lombardi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-lombardi/) > [Who could believe an ant in theory? A giraffe in blueprint? Ten thousand doctors of what's possible Could reason half the jungle out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ciardi/who-could-believe-an-ant-in-theory-a-giraffe-in-blueprint-ten/) [John Ciardi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ciardi/) > [It's an incredibly difficult thing to bring a giraffe down. They can kill a lion with a single blow from their feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-lumley/it-s-an-incredibly-difficult-thing-to-bring-a-giraffe-down-they-can/) [Joanna Lumley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-lumley/) > [If I know a song of Africa, of the giraffe and the African new moon lying on her back, of the plows in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isak-dinesen/if-i-know-a-song-of-africa-of-the-giraffe-and-the-african-new-moon/) [Isak Dinesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isak-dinesen/) > [If combat means living in a ditch, females have biological problems staying in a ditch for 30 days because they get infections... Males are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/if-combat-means-living-in-a-ditch-females-have-biological-problems/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [Sitting in the cinema, ready to watch the movie, then BOOM! The human giraffe sits in front of you. -](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sitting-in-the-cinema-ready-to-watch-the-movie-then-boom-the-human/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sophie is asking mum ‘Why am I NOT a doll NOT an adult NOT a boy NOT a giraffe?’ It’s so easy to miss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-caine/sophie-is-asking-mum-why-am-i-not-a-doll-not-an-adult-not-a-boy-not-a/) [Christine Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-caine/) > [No Child Left Behind ... is a giraffe with an elephant's body. ... You can't take the vision of Ted Kennedy and merge it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-rauschenberger/no-child-left-behind-is-a-giraffe-with-an-elephant-s-body-you-can-t/) [Steve Rauschenberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-rauschenberger/) > [Jason said, "Yes. Gerard T. Giraffe." What does the 'T' stand for?" 'The.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/jason-said-yes-gerard-t-giraffe-what-does-the-t-stand-for-the/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [God is really only another artist. He invented the giraffe, the elephant and the cat. He has no real style, He just goes on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/god-is-really-only-another-artist-he-invented-the-giraffe-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [When people think about the ark, they're always thinking about all the thousands of years of religious iconography of a ship with a bow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-aronofsky/when-people-think-about-the-ark-they-re-always-thinking-about-all-the/) [Darren Aronofsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-aronofsky/) > [In his anti-Darwinian book... (and eponymously named The Neck of the Giraffe ), Francis Hitching tells the story... "The need to survive by reaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/in-his-anti-darwinian-book-and-eponymously-named-the-neck-of-the/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [I very much like Kenya. It's hard to beat the Masai Mara and the idea of ballooning across it. I have a great time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-burnett/i-very-much-like-kenya-it-s-hard-to-beat-the-masai-mara-and-the-idea/) [Mark Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-burnett/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Elvin Hayes > [Blame is the cowards way out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvin-hayes/blame-is-the-cowards-way-out/) [Elvin Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvin-hayes/) [Explore all 2 Elvin Hayes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvin-hayes/) ## More Ball player quotes > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. 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You've got to like competing. That's how your team gets better, when you have competition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herm-edwards/i-competed-every-day-as-a-professional-football-player-you-ve-got-to/) [Herm Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herm-edwards/) > [“I can’t wait to knock you up and have a whole team of little baseball players around this place!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-sterling/i-can-t-wait-to-knock-you-up-and-have-a-whole-team-of-little-baseball/) [J. Sterling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-sterling/) > [MOST AMAZING FOOTBALL PLAYER IN THE ENTIRE WORLD && IN REAL MADRID](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/most-amazing-football-player-in-the-entire-world-in-real-madrid/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My older brothers were both basketball players so I just grew up around the gym.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brook-lopez/my-older-brothers-were-both-basketball-players-so-i-just-grew-up/) [Brook Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brook-lopez/) > [I'm a basketball player, so I want to do whatever I've got to do to be on the floor and I'm prepared for that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyrese-haliburton/i-m-a-basketball-player-so-i-want-to-do-whatever-i-ve-got-to-do-to-be/) [Tyrese Haliburton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyrese-haliburton/) > [“Seeing yourself in print is such an amazing concept: you can get so much attention without having to actually show up somewhere. While others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/seeing-yourself-in-print-is-such-an-amazing-concept-you-can-get-so/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [People say baseball players should go out and have fun. No way. To me, baseball is pressure, I always feel it. This is work.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-eckersley/people-say-baseball-players-should-go-out-and-have-fun-no-way-to-me/) [Dennis Eckersley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-eckersley/) > [Canada is a country whose main exports are hockey players and cold fronts. Our main imports are baseball players and acid rain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-trudeau/canada-is-a-country-whose-main-exports-are-hockey-players-and-cold/) [Pierre Trudeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-trudeau/) > [“The great thing about baseball players, from the point of view of personal hygiene, is how seldom they break a sweat.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-great-thing-about-baseball-players-from-the-point-of-view-of/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [A lot of scouts and people are enamored with athleticism and youth. So they take that any day over mature, high-quality basketball players.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-brogdon/a-lot-of-scouts-and-people-are-enamored-with-athleticism-and-youth-so/) [Malcolm Brogdon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-brogdon/) > [I'm a baseball player. I've done this my whole life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-sale/i-m-a-baseball-player-i-ve-done-this-my-whole-life/) [Chris Sale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-sale/) [Browse all 1,395 Ball player quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ball-player/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When asked if he was a basketball player he replied No I clean giraffe ears.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elvin Hayes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvin-hayes/when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player-he-replied-no-i-clean/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ball player" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvin-hayes/when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player-he-replied-no-i-clean/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d81/elvin-hayes-107630_ball-player_when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player_2626841.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d81/elvin-hayes-107630_ball-player_when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player_2626841.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d81/elvin-hayes-107630_ball-player_when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player_2626841.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When asked if he was a basketball player he replied No I clean giraffe ears.” — Elvin Hayes", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Elvin Hayes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvin-hayes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When asked if he was a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvin-hayes/when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player-he-replied-no-i-clean/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvin-hayes/when-asked-if-he-was-a-basketball-player-he-replied-no-i-clean/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```