We have compiled an NBA quotes quiz for you to take. These have been said by some of the most famous basketball players of all time. Can you guess who each of these quotes belongs to? We have also taken these inspirational NBA quotes and have applied them to life off the court as well.
NBA Quotes Quiz: Which Player Said It?
Instructions: All you have to do is match these NBA quotes with the player who said it. Hint: we never used the same player twice during this quiz.
"Ask not what your teammates can do for you. Ask what you can do for your teammates"
"Greatness is defined by how much you want to put into what you do. Greatness comes with victory, but it also comes with being able to come back from adversity"
"I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed"
"The day I stopped worrying about stats is the day I started winning"
"Sometimes a player’s greatest challenge is coming to grips with his role on the team"
"I can't relate to lazy people. We don't speak the same language. I don't understand you. I don't want to understand you."
“When you think you have done enough, do a little more, because someone out there is working harder than you.”
“One man can be a crucial ingredient on a team, but one man cannot make a team.”
"You can't get much done in life if you only work on the days when you feel good"
"Nobody should expect more of you than you expect of yourself"
"Do your best when no one is looking. If you do that, then you can be successful in anything that you put your mind to"
"Commitment separates those who live their dreams from those who live their lives regretting the opportunities they have squandered"
"If you are afraid of failure you don't deserve to be successful"
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List Of The Best NBA Quotes & How They Can Apply To You
In this section, we try our best to explain each of these NBA quotes to help motivate you. We also try to apply them to life off the court as well.
1) “Ask not what your teammates can do for you. Ask what you can do for your teammates”
This was said by Magic Johnson, who is considered one of the greatest players in NBA history. It can be easy to look at our teammates and think, why didn’t they score that basket? Or, why didn’t they pass me the ball when I called for it? Instead, you should be asking what you can do to help your teammates become better players. Instead of complaining about your teammate, ask them to go through the playbook with you or run some drills. That way, you guys can get on the same page and learn to work better together. This can also apply to your life off the court. Instead of complaining about a co-worker who is making mistakes, start a discussion with them and offer to help them out. People tend to respond better to kindness, instead of criticism.
2) “Greatness is defined by how much you want to put into what you do. Greatness comes with victory, but it also comes with being able to come back from adversity”
This was said by Lebron James, who is arguably the greatest player to ever play basketball. He is someone who has chased Michael Jordan for his entire career, which means that he was always chasing greatness. If you are chasing greatness, you are not going to win every game or every season. Greatness can sometimes be how you face and come back from adversity. That can be just as crucial as the wins and the individual awards. This applies to the basketball court and also in life. Don’t get discouraged by the tough times that you face. Chase your dreams and learn from your losses.
3) “I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed”
This was said by Michael Jordan and it really helps put things into perspective. Many consider Jordan as the greatest basketball player of all time but he is also someone who failed a lot in his career. He missed plenty of shots and didn’t even make his high school basketball team until he was a Junior. Use your failure as fuel to help you become better. That doesn’t just apply to basketball but any challenge that you face in life. If someone as great as Jordan can fail, it shows us that we all can.
4) “The day I stopped worrying about stats is the day I started winning.”
This was said by Shaquille O’Neal, who is considered one of the greatest players in NBA history. Sometimes we can focus too much on our individual stats and forget about the team. This can be true on both the basketball court and in life. When we stop only focusing on ourselves, that is when we truly become winners.
5) “Sometimes a player’s greatest challenge is coming to grips with his role on the team”
This was said by Scottie Pippen, who is considered one of the best defensive players in NBA history. Scottie was an incredible player in his own right but had to play as the second option beside Michael Jordan. Instead of demanding a trade, he accepted his role and went on to win 6 NBA Championships alongside Jordan. We all can’t be the number one option but we can do whatever it takes to win, regardless of the role. Sometimes we have to sacrifice personal glory for the betterment of the team.
6) “I can’t relate to lazy people. We don’t speak the same language. I don’t understand you. I don’t want to understand you.”
This was said by Kobe Bryant who was best known for his ‘Mamba Mentality’ and tireless work ethic. He was often described as the first person to enter the gym and the last person to leave. He would wake up at 4:00 in the morning on a daily basis in order to chase greatness. Kobe is someone who could never understand someone who is lazy because he never wasted a minute of his time in his chase to be the best basketball player ever. If you want to be great at anything, don’t be lazy and work tirelessly on your craft.
7) “When you think you have done enough, do a little more, because someone out there is working harder than you.”
This was said by Larry Bird, who is widely considered one of the greatest to ever play the game of basketball. No matter who you are, there is always going to be someone who is working harder than you. If you are the best player in your State, there is somebody working harder to take your spot. If you are one of the best players in the NBA, there is always someone who is getting up earlier than you to work on their game. This is a great quote that applies for basketball players but also for anybody who is chasing their dream. There is always someone who will try to take your spot, so make sure to always use that as motivation to keep getting better.
8) “One man can be a crucial ingredient on a team, but one man cannot make a team.”
This was said by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who is considered one of the best basketball players of all time. You can be the best player and take every shot but it takes a team to win Championships. Just say that you are on fire and shoot 20 for 25 in a single game. You scored 40 points but your team could still lose the game if your team lets in 41 points on defense. If you don’t have a team working together, it doesn’t matter how good one player is.
9) “You can’t get much done in life if you only work on the days when you feel good”
This was said by Jerry West, who is an NBA legend. As basketball players, there are going to be days when you don’t feel like working out or putting up shots. There are going to be days where you need to fight that urge to sleep in longer or skip practice. Those are the days that will define you as a player. This also applies to life off the court. There are going to be days where you don’t feel like doing something but you will become better by pushing through it.
10) “Nobody should expect more of you than you expect of yourself”
This was said by Carmelo Anthony, who has been a top star in the NBA for many years. As you progress as a player, there are going to be more and more expectations thrown upon you. What Carmelo is saying here is really about believing in yourself and expecting greatness from yourself. This will help push you every day to become the best player possible. That way, when expectations continue to grow, you will never become satisfied with your success.
11) “Do your best when no one is looking. If you do that, then you can be successful in anything that you put your mind to”
This was said by Bob Cousy, who is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. This is one of those NBA quotes that applies to not only basketball but to all walks of life. If you take 1000 shots a day by yourself when nobody is watching, that is going to make you a better player when the actual game comes. Off the court, if you spend 30-minutes a day practicing a new language, you are going to be so much better at it after a few months.
12) “Commitment separates those who live their dreams from those who live their lives regretting the opportunities they have squandered”
This was said by Bill Russell, who won 11 NBA Championships in his career with the Boston Celtics. Regret is one of the worst things that somebody can live with as they get older. Do you want to look back at your life and wish that you spent more time in the gym? Do you want to look back at your life and wish that you could have played in the NBA? Commit yourself to something and try to live out your dream. You might fail but at least you won’t wonder, what if?
13) “If you are afraid of failure you don’t deserve to be successful”
This was said by Charles Barkley, who was an 11-time NBA All-Star and former NBA MVP. Failure is something that you shouldn’t be afraid of. Failure is something that you should embrace and try to learn from. Don’t spend time thinking about missing that final shot and letting everybody down. Imagine yourself hitting that shot and becoming the hero. If you do end up missing when the actual game comes, use that failure as motivation to become better. Don’t be afraid of the moment.
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