Top 45 Jeff Van Gundy Quotes

Are you playing for your teammates and coaches? That’s how it should be.

I don’t know about any others, but coaching basketball is the only thing I can do.

I read somewhere that failure is an event, not a person, but I never feel that way. It’s who I am.

In one era, it’s hard enough to compare people. But comparing people of different eras… that’s next to impossible.

I enjoy watching Gregg Popovich-coached teams.

The triangle itself is just an offense based on freedom of the ball to go to different places, everybody feeling involved. It’s a good thing.

I never lost the desire to coach.

For professional athletes, I always think about it in these terms: the most difficult diva of women’s soccer would be the easiest NBA player ever.

I think everyone talks about talent. It’s really one of the most overused terms. It comes down to, do you play, and do you win? Talent is one factor, but certainly not the only one.

Everyone’s system in the NBA makes sense. It all comes down to the quality of player and the quality of execution.

People talk about Kobe’s 81-point game, the second-highest scoring game in NBA history. I saw the game. I don’t care if it was 79, 81 – I just remember the game. I remember the moves. I remember the shots. I remember the beauty of it. The numbers? What he shot from the field? I don’t care.

The public Yao was the private Yao: To his core, there was an unmistakable peace to him.

I love listening to Coach Belichick’s press conferences: even though they may not be what the media wants, they’re great coaching, teaching tools.

I don’t like comparing people or teams.

I don’t ever remember wanting to do anything but coach. My dad obviously influenced me. But it wasn’t because he sat there and drilled coaching stuff into our heads. We were on the bench keeping the scorebook and traveling with the team on weekends. It was such a great upbringing.

I think coaches should get the same amount of credit in victory that they get in defeat.

When you have the best player, you can do a lot of things. The best player can usually back it up, too.

Detroit Pistons basketball slogan: When the going gets tough, we fire the coach.

I miss coaching – certain elements of coaching.

Only once did someone talking about my appearance bother me.

Stop the nonsense about ‘student-athlete.’

You start comparing people, and ultimately, somebody feels diminished.

I had a great job with the Knicks.

I think the beautiful part about Yao is that his main legacy won’t be about the game. His legacy will be about helping people. His legacy will be taking on important world causes to better his world.

I think anybody confusing a system with a reason for success is making a huge mistake. Systems don’t win games. Players do.

D’Antoni can be successful playing slow or fast because he is a bright guy who has very creative ideas.

I have known Marbury since he was in seventh grade, and I have always felt he is a hell of an NBA player.

Losing has an unbelievably negative impact on me.

I think there are much bigger differences between players in this league than between coaches. There is a big gap between LeBron James and the small forward for whoever. Far bigger than between two coaches.

I was asked to do something and represent my country. That’s a great honor. This isn’t about what it could do for me but what I could do for U.S.A. Basketball.

All the fascination with numbers conspires to make you forget the beauty of the game sometimes.

I think Jeff Hornacek is a very, very good basketball coach and an outstanding person.

You can’t hold up in a FIBA game if you don’t have great competitive spirit.

Why is UCLA and Georgia Tech in China to play a basketball game? Missing all that school, and then force-feeding their fans the idea of ‘student-athletes.’

Among the hardest-working players I’ve ever been associated, Yao stands at the very top of the list. Beyond that, though, here’s what truly separated him from everyone else: His ability to enjoy other people’s successes.

Players and coaches alike, you sign up for 82 games. You get paid for 82.

There are franchise players to build around that have championship-level talent, skill, basketball IQ, and character – it’s hard to find those guys. Those guys are rare.

There is a goodness about Yao that is unique, that never left him through all the pain and injuries and disappointments that accompanied his unprecedented accomplishments and successes.

Goaltending was brought in because of Mikan and Chamberlain. So rules do change for specific players, in concert with a need to stay up to date on how coaches are taking advantage of the rules.

Christmas Day is a big day for NBA basketball.

Systems are overrated; players are underrated.

Phil Jackson was a brilliant basketball coach, not just because of the offense that he employed, but it was so many other things that went into it.

Kobe Bryant is a terrific offensive rebounder.

I’ve had two owners – Jim Dolan and Les Alexander in Houston. Both were terrific. They wanted to win badly and gave you the resources to win.

I quit the Knicks, so I know what quitting is. I did. I quit. And it’s something I regret to this day. I live with it every day, and I regret it. And I let my emotions come into it. And I was just emotionally spent. I made a bad decision, and I quit.