Rick Pitino Quotes - Page 2

It's better to have a good player with the basketball in late game situations than to have plays.

Dreamers are not content with being mediocre.

Live in the precious present.

Coaches are bridge builders. It's our job to build a bridge for our athletes to cross over.

Make incremental progress, change comes not by the yard, but by the inch.

Tackle the difficult things first in the morning; make changes in the way you network. Treat everyone with respect and dignity. This stops you from cynicism and negativity. End your day with that same attitude you started. Renew your contract with a day well completed.

The bone's 6 inches out of his leg and all he's yelling is, 'Win the game, win the game.' I've not seen that in my life. Pretty special young man. I don't think we could have gathered ourselves - I know I couldn't have - if Kevin didn't say over and over again, 'Just go win the game,' I don't think we could have gone in the locker room with a loss after seeing that. We had to gather ourselves. We couldn't lose this game for him. We just couldn't.

When love and discipline come together you have great chemistry.

The more you lose, the more positive you have to become. When you're winning, you can ride players harder because their self-esteem is high. If you are losing and you try to be tough, you're asking for dissension.

I actually think if you have a strong junior class, that's the best possible scenario. In their senior year, guys who are on the threshold of making it to the NBA start getting preoccupied in their thoughts elsewhere more than concerning themselves with the present. The junior class is the perfect age.

The basic premise of my system is to fatigue your opponents with constant pressure defensively and constant movement offensively.

Every individual in an organization is motivated by something different.

The key to coaching is not what you do, but the way you do it. The intangibles, the motivational parts of the game are the most important facets of it.

Ego is the greatest killer of one's potential

Self-esteem is directly linked to deserving success. You must deserve victory to feel good about yourself.

Doubt is one of the main paths on the highway to failure.

When it comes to team dynamics - on a basketball court or in a corporate setting - maintaining a positive atmosphere is crucial.

I'm at the stage of my career when it's not only about winning and developing players, it's about having fun. That's a void in your life right now, but it's something you're going to have here.

I'd learned how much happiness money can bring you. Very little.

When you describe passion at any age, passion is derived from everything, from the people you work with to enjoying the last four years.

Learning to live in the present tense-one that's free from the failures of the past and the anxieties of the future-is a wonderful gift, and one you always should be striving for.

If I didn't have a recruiting engagement, I was going to be here. I did everything possible to change the recruiting thing. I'm a very small part of this night, but I did want to be a part of it.

Francisco Garcia could have been a high draft choice last year, probably in the 20s. He's the best wing player I've ever coached. But he's done it the right way. He knew he had to work on his body to become a good pro. When he goes into the pros, he'll be physically ready.

I can say that hands down from being in this business 32 years; we're going to be much better than we were last year just because there's eight new players that now have experience and Palacios will be healthy.

A lot of people always use the term, 'I'm so blessed.' Most of it they believe is true.