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People Think I Would Never Take On A Team That Has No Legitimate Chance To Win A Championship, This Is One Of The Major Misconceptions About Me. Success Can Be Measured In Many Different Ways. . . . Either Way, I Would Find The Challenge Invigorating.

-Phil Jackson

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People Think I Would

Phil Jackson

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People Think I Would Never Take On A Team That Has No Legitimate Chance To Win A Championship, This Is One Of The Major Misconceptions About Me. Success Can Be Measured In Many Different Ways. . . . Either Way, I Would Find The Challenge Invigorating.

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In Basketball - As In Life - True Joy Comes From Being Fully Present In Each And Every Moment, Not Just When Things Are Going Your Way.

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I Think The Most Important Thing About Coaching Is That You Have To Have A Sense Of Confidence About What You're Doing. You Have To Be A Salesman And You Have To Get Your Players, Particularly Your Leaders, To Believe In What You're Trying To Accomplish On The Basketball Floor.

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My Job As A Coach Was To Make Something Meaningful Out Of One Of The Most Mundane Activities On The Planet: Playing Pro Basketball.

Kobe Was Hell-bent On Surpassing Jordan As The Greatest Player In The Game. His Obsession With Michael Was Striking. When We Played In Chicago That Season, I Orchestrated A Meeting Between The Two Of Them, Thinking That Michael Might Help Shift Kobe’s Attitude Toward Selfless Teamwork. After They Shook Hands, The First Words Out Of Kobe’s Mouth Were, ‘you Know I Can Kick Your Ass One On One.’

Not Everyone Has A Purpose.

You're Only A Success For The Moment That You Complete A Successful Act.

What Moves Me Is Watching Young Men Bond Together And Tap Into The Magic That Arises When They Focus With Their Whole Heart And Soul On Something Greater Than Themselves. Once You've Experienced That, It's Something You Never Forget.

I Thrive On Challenges, And There Is No More Imposing Challenge For Someone In My Profession Than Winning An Nba Title.

For Us Tall People, The Whole Key Is That Your Hips And Your Knees Should Form A Right Angle When You Sit Down. That's Where Backs And Hips Get To Be Problems For Big Guys.

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In Basketball - As In Life - True Joy Comes From Being Fully Present In Each And Every Moment, Not Just When Things Are Going Your Way. Of Course, It's No Accident That Things Are More Likely To Go Your Way When You Stop Worrying About Whether You're Going To Win Or Lose And Focus Your Full Attention On What's Happening Right This Moment.

Like Life, Basketball Is Messy And Unpredictable. It Has Its Way With You, No Matter How Hard You Try To Control It. The Trick Is To Experience Each Moment With A Clear Mind And Open Heart. When You Do That, The Game - And Life - Will Take Care Of Itself.

Everybody Has An Opportunity To Play A Role, A Playmaking Role, So It Makes It Harder To Coach. It Takes A Little More Time.

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I Care About Systematically Playing Basketball. If The Spacing Isn't Right, If Guys Are Standing On Top Of Each Other, If There Aren't Lanes To Be Provided, Or Rebounders Available To Offensively Rebound The Ball, Or We Don't Have Defensive Balance When A Shot Goes Up, All Of These Things Are Fundamental Basketball. I Follow It.

Tomorrow Gives A Beck'ning Hand-- I Turn My Face Away; I'll Not Invite Her To My Home-- I Only Love Today.

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The Best Thing That I Think Happened To Me Was I Got The Opportunity To Have Really Good Players And We Were Able To Meet The Demand Of The Competition. And I Think That's What I Value Most.

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Yes, Victory Is Sweet, But It Doesn't Necessarily Make Life Any Easier The Next Season Or Even The Next Day.

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Remember, Team, Surrender The Me For The We.

The Problem With Trading Dominant Players Of That Size Is You Never Get In Return What You've Bargained Away.

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A Coach's Main Job Is To Reawaken A Spirit In Which The Players Can Blend Together Effortlessly.

People Think I Would Never Take On A Team That Has No Legitimate Chance To Win A Championship, This Is One Of The Major Misconceptions About Me. Success Can Be Measured In Many Different Ways. . . . Either Way, I Would Find The Challenge Invigorating.

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I Won't Coach This Team Next Year If He Is Still Here. He Won't Listen To Anyone. I've Had It With This Kid.

The Best Part Of Basketball, For Those People On The Inside, Is The Bus Going To The Airport After You've Won A Game On An Opponent's Floor. It's Been A Very Tough Battle. And Preferably, In The Playoffs. And That Feeling That You Have, Together As A Group, Having Gone To An Opponent's Floor And Won A Very Good Victory, Is As About As High As You Can Get.

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I Always Tell The Players, "we Are In The Business That's Very Much Like A Marathon Race Only We're Gonna Be Doing It For 260-something Days Or So." And The Race Is Something You Get Ready To Do. There's Gonna Be Some Trial Inside Of There, But You Put Yourself Through It Because Ultimately It Brings A Lot Of Meaning To Your Life, It Gives A Lot Of Energy To What You're Doing.

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The Real Value In Everything You Do Is In The Details. I Just Like That Quote. A Very Similar Way To Say The Same Thing. If You're Washing Dishes You Pay Attention To Washing Dishes. If You're Driving A Car, You're Paying Attention To Driving The Car.

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Despite Their Tremendous Talent, (nba Players) Are Still, By And Large, Young Adults, Seeking Validation From An Authority Figure, And There Is No Greater Authority Figure On A Team Than The Coach. Needless To Say, In Today's Warped, Self-indulgent Climate, Too Many Players Couldn't Care Less About Appeasing The Coach.

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The Greatness Of Michael Jordan Is His Competitive Drive. The Weakness Of Michael Jordan Is His Competitive Drive

If You Have A Clear Mind . . . You Won't Have To Search For Direction. Direction Will Come To You.

Before A Vision (dream) Can Become A Reality, It Must Be Owned By Every Member Of The Group.

My Dad Always Had This Little Sign On His Desk: 'the Bigger Your Head Is, The Easier Your Shoes Are To Fill'. He Really Drilled That In.

Basketball Is A Great Mystery. You Can Do Everything Right. You Can Have The Perfect Mix Of Talent And The Best System Of Offense In The Game. You Can Devise A Foolproof Defensive Strategy And Prepare Your Players For Every Possible Eventuality. But If The Players Don’t Have A Sense Of Oneness As A Group, Your Efforts Won’t Pay Off. And The Bond That Unites A Team Can Be So Fragile, So Elusive.

I'm Not Trying To Find Answers Anymore. I'm Trying To Live What I Know.

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I Think The Most Important Thing About Coaching Is That You Have To Have A Sense Of Confidence About What You're Doing.

I'm Not Going To Coach Again. I've Done My Coaching, And I Think I Can Put That Aside.

You Can't Force Your Will On People. If You Want Them To Act Differently, You Need To Inspire Them To Change Themselves

I Gave It My Body And Mind, But I Have Kept My Soul.

I Know What It Takes To Be A Coach. I've Gone Through That. I Think I Came Up Short My Last Season. Lots Of Things Were Happening Physically To Me, And Emotionally, Perhaps Mentally, Too. I Thought It Was Time To Tend To More Important Things, Like Health And Like Family. I Still Enjoy That, And I Don't Think I Have Any Need To Go Back To Coach.

Winning Is Important To Me, But What Brings Me Real Joy Is The Experience Of Being Fully Engaged In Whatever I'm Doing.

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