Basketball Quotes

A collection of inspirational basketball quotes listed alphabetically by the person quoted.

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• Bagehot, Walter "The great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do."

• Bailey, Dan "Champions have no off-season."

• Bannister, Roger "The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful is the man who will win."

• Barry, Rick "I was taught to play the game from a total team concept--to be able to do everything reasonably well and some things extraordinarily well. If I'm not shooting well, I'll try to be an asset in other ways-like defense, passing, rebounding, and hustle."
  

• Barton, Bruce “Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside themselves was superior to circumstance.”
  
  
• Bee, Claire   "Play to win, observe the rules, and act like a gentleman."
  
  
• Bennett, Dick We cannot accept in victory what we would not accept in defeat." quoted in the book A Season With Coach Dick Bennett by Eric Ferris
  
  
• Bennett, Dick “I concluded some time ago that a major part of success of a team, or of an individual, has a great deal to do with the intangible qualities possessed.  The real key is how a person sees himself [humility], how he feels about what he does [passion], how he works with others [unity], how he makes others betters [servanthood], and how he deals with frustration and success, truly learning from each situation [thankfulness], I believe those concepts are the essence of a good player, team, coach, or individual in any capacity in life.” quoted in " A Season With Coach Dick Bennett" by Eric Ferris
  
  
• Bexton, Charles "Experience shows that success is due less to ability than to zeal. The winner is he who gives himself to his work, body and soul." 
  
  
• Bird, Larry "Leadership is diving for a loose ball...It's abut being able to take it as well as dish it out. That's the only way your going to get respect from other players."
  
  
• Blair, Gary Ryan "Do more than is required. What is the distance between someone who achieves their goals consistently and those who spend their lives and careers merely following? The extra mile."
  
  
• Blanchard, Kenneth "The key to successful leadership today is influence, not authority."
  
  
• Bojaxhiu, Agnese Gonxhe (Mother Teresa) "Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin."
  
  
• Bonaparte, Napoleon "A leader is a dealer in hope."
  
  
• Boselli, Tony "You can't be a good leader without good character."
  
  
• Boyd, Ty "Success comes from taking the hand you were dealt and using it to the very best of your ability."
  
  
• Bryant, Paul "Bear" "If anything goes bad, I did it. If anything goes semi-good, we did it. If anything goes really good, then they did it. That's all it takes to get people to win football games."
  
  
• Bryant, Paul "Bear" "There's not substitute for guts."
  
  
• Brett, George "I don't think I can play any other way but all out . . . I enjoy the game so much because I'm putting so much into it."
  
  
• Brown, Larry "Failure does not come from losing, but from not trying."
  
  
• Brown, Paul "A winner never whines."
  
  
• Buchanan, Pat "It's in the struggle itself that you define yourself."
  
  
• Buffett, Warren "It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently."
  
  
• Burke, Edmund "He that wrestles with us strengthens our nerves and sharpens our skill.”
  
  
• Burns, Laing Jr. "Possession of the ball is the key to winning in football, basketball, and the game of life."
  
  
• Bush, Barbara “If human beings are perceived as potentials rather than problems, as possessing strengths instead of weaknesses, as unlimited rather that dull and unresponsive, then they thrive and grow to their capabilities."
  
  Not all of our basketball quotes came from basketball coaches or basketball players, they are all useful resources for basketball coaching and to life in general. Check the other tabs for more basketball quotes.
  
  

  Coaching Toolbox Basketball Quotes Volume I: an e-book with 100 basketball quotes for subscribing to our daily e-mail. You can subscribe and immediately receive your e-book by clicking here.
  
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  Here is another great resource for basketball quotes. Watch it by clicking this link: Inspiration 365
  
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