Once you are labeled ‘the best’ you want to stay up there, and you can’t do it by loafing around.
I can see why fans don’t like to watch pro basketball. I don’t, either. It’s not exciting.
Who in their right mind wouldn’t listen to what Larry Bird tells them? He knows what it takes to be a successful player, and he’s letting us do the things to have the success.
When I was a player, I didn’t expect my teammates to play the way I did. I did expect them to work hard hard every day and get better. And I never learned anything by losing.
I wanted to compete at the highest level again – and that’s the NBA.
I like being by myself.
You never make any of the shots you never take. 87% of the ones you do take, you’ll miss too. I make 110% of my shots.
The best basketball announcer is one who allows you to close your eyes.
Coaches can talk and talk and talk about something, but if you get it on tape and show it to them, it is so much more effective.
The nature of competition is such that any number of people invariably have their eyes on the same prize you do. Recognize your assets and employ them to the best of your ability.
Basketball has been my life and I worked at it so hard because I enjoyed it so much.
Strength is not nearly as important as desire. I don’t think you can teach anyone desire. I think it’s a gift. I don’t know why I have it, but I do.
I’ve always been interested in jobs in the NBA. But I’ve been in this for 20 years and it might be time to do something else.
If there was a payment to the bank due, and we needed shoes, she’d get the shoes, and then deal with them guys at the bank. I don’t mean she wouldn’t pay the bank, but the children always came first.
I used to love the feeling of running, of running too far. It made my skin tingle.
If you tell a teammate you’re ready to play as tough as you’re able to, you’d better go out there and do it.
Basketball was always a game to me. One of the greatest things in life for me was to be able to play what I loved dearly and get paid for it. So it was always a game to me and that’s how I perceived everything.
Anytime you’ve got an opportunity to play for your country and win a gold medal, I think that takes it all. That’s the greatest thing you could ever achieve in your sport. So, I have been very fortunate to play on great teams, but the gold medal was probably the best.
I think you have to work very hard and dedicate yourself and have the respect of your teammates before you’re about to go out and just try to take a game over by yourself.
I have always been confident in my skills and once the game got going I knew I was probably the best player on the floor most of the time whether it was junior high, high school or college. I knew I had control of the game.
The more you win, the better you’re gonna get. It grows on itself.