"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." ~ Michael Jordan
"Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen." ~ Michael Jordan
"I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it." ~ Michael Jordan
"Another day, another opportunity to prove everyone who doubts you wrong." ~ Michael Jordan
"Never say never, because limits, like fears, are often just an illusion." ~ Michael Jordan
"You always have to focus in life on what you want to achieve." ~ Michael Jordan
"Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships." ~ Michael Jordan
"Don't be afraid to fail. Be afraid not to try." ~ Michael Jordan
"You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way. Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise." ~ Michael Jordan
"Sometimes a winner is just a dreamer who never gave up." ~ Michael Jordan
"Not every flying hero has a cape." ~ Michael Jordan
"Nothing of value comes without being earned." ~ Michael Jordan
"To learn to succeed, you must first learn to fail." ~ Michael Jordan
"My advice is find fuel in failure. Sometimes failure gets you closer to where you want to be." ~ Michael Jordan
"Its better to shoot and miss, then to let time run out and wonder what if" ~ Michael Jordan
"Excellence isn't a one-week or one-year ideal. It's a constant." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you quit ONCE it becomes a habit.Never quit!!!" ~ Michael Jordan
"A coach is someone that sees beyond your limits and guides you to greatness!" ~ Michael Jordan
"If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you do the work you get rewarded. There are no shortcuts in life." ~ Michael Jordan
"The harder I prepare, the luckier I seem to get." ~ Michael Jordan
"Look me in the eye. It’s ok if you’re scared. So am I. But we are scared for different reasons. I am scared of what I won’t become. And you are scared of what I could become. Look at me. I won’t let myself end where I started. I won’t let myself finish where I began. I know what is within me, even if you can’t see it yet. Look me in the eyes. I have something more important than courage. I have patience. I will become what I know I am." ~ Michael Jordan
"I've failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed." ~ Michael Jordan
"You have to be uncompromised in your level of commitment to whatever you are doing, or it can disappear as fast as it appeared... Excellence isn't a one-week or one-year ideal. It's a constant. There will be days when you don't feel on top of your game, or meetings in which you aren't at your best, but your commitment remains constant. No compromises." ~ Michael Jordan
"Everybody has talent, but ability takes hard work." ~ Michael Jordan
"My attitude is that if you push me towards something that you think is a weakness, then I will turn that perceived weakness into a strength." ~ Michael Jordan
"If nobody will help you do it alone!" ~ Michael Jordan
"The reason I became such a successful athlete was my mind was saying that no matter who you put up against me, I am better, I am the best." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you are confident you have done everything possible to prepare yourself, then there is nothing to fear." ~ Michael Jordan
"I know fear is an obstacle for some people, but it is an illusion to me . . . Failure always made me try harder next time." ~ Michael Jordan
"Anything can happen if you are willing to put in the work and remain open to the possibility. Dreams are realized by effort, determination, passion and staying connected to that sense of who you are." ~ Michael Jordan
"Focus like a laser, not a flashlight" ~ Michael Jordan
"I can never stop working hard. Each day I feel that I have to improve. Hardwork...Determination...I gotta keep pushing myself." ~ Michael Jordan
"To be successful you have to be selfish, or else you never achieve. And once you get to your highest level, then you have to be unselfish. Stay reachable. Stay in touch. Don't isolate." ~ Michael Jordan
"It doesn't matter if you fall down, it's whether you get back up." ~ Michael Jordan
"It's not about the shoes, it's what you do in them." ~ Michael Jordan
"The best come from the worst" ~ Michael Jordan
"Don't let them drag you down by rumors just go with what you believe in." ~ Michael Jordan
"I've never lost a game I just ran out of time." ~ Michael Jordan
"Never think of the consequences of failing for you will always think of a negative result. Think only positive thoughts and your mind will gravitate towards those thoughts!" ~ Michael Jordan
"I never feared about my skills because I put in the work. Work ethic eliminates fear. So if you put forth the work, what are you fearing? You know what you're capable of doing and what you're not." ~ Michael Jordan
"You don't show up on game day and expect to be great. Greatness happens in practice. You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them." ~ Michael Jordan
"Success isn't something you chase. It's something you have to put forth the effort for constantly. Then maybe it'll come when you least expect it. Most people don't understand that." ~ Michael Jordan
"Winners don't just learn the fundamentals, they master them. You have to monitor your fundamentals constantly because the only thing that changes will be your attention to them." ~ Michael Jordan
"I was aware of my success, but I never stopped trying to get better." ~ Michael Jordan
"All I wanted to do was to improve, to keep getting better." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you're trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I've had them; everybody has had them. But obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it." ~ Michael Jordan
"There are no shortcuts. I approached practices the same way I approached games. You can't turn it on and off like a faucet. I couldn't dog it during practice and then, when I needed that extra push late in the game, expect it to be there. Very few people get anywhere by taking shortcuts." ~ Michael Jordan
"There are plenty of teams in every sport that have great players and never win titles. Most of the time, those players aren't willing to sacrifice for the greater good of the team. The funny thing is, in the end, their unwillingness to sacrifice only makes individual goals more difficult to achieve. One thing I believe to the fullest is that if you think and achieve as a team, the individual accolades will take care of themselves. Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships." ~ Michael Jordan
"Great players never look in the mirror and think I'm a great basketball player. You ask yourself, Am I the best player I can be?" ~ Michael Jordan
"My father used to say that it's never too late to do anything you wanted to do. And he said, 'You never know what you can accomplish until you try.'" ~ Michael Jordan
"Always turn a negative situation into a positive situation." ~ Michael Jordan
"Be true to the game, because the game will be true to you. If you try to shortcut the game, then the game will shortcut you. If you put forth the effort, good things will be bestowed upon you. That's truly about the game, and in some ways that's about life too." ~ Michael Jordan
"Sometimes you need to get hit in the head to realize that you're in a fight." ~ Michael Jordan
"I didn't come here to be average." ~ Michael Jordan
"It doesn't matter if you win as long as you give everything in your heart" ~ Michael Jordan
"All I knew is that I NEVER wanted to be AVERAGE." ~ Michael Jordan
"Authenticity is about being true to who you are, even when everyone around you wants you to be someone else" ~ Michael Jordan
"My best skill was that I was coachable. I was a sponge and aggressive to learn." ~ Michael Jordan
"Failure makes me work even harder." ~ Michael Jordan
"My heroes are and were my parents. I can't see having anyone else as my heroes." ~ Michael Jordan
"I want to wake up every day and do whatever comes in my mind, and not feel pressure or obligations to do anything else in my life." ~ Michael Jordan
"You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you put your mind to doing whatever it is you want to do, good things can happen." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you can't stop thinking about it, don't stop working on it." ~ Michael Jordan
"So, the next time you're out working on your game and they pass you the rock, don't just take it to the hole. Take it to the next level. Don't just bend rims. Bend expectations. Let them see you and feel you and by the very virtue of your love, the truth in your game, they will hear you. Let your game speak." ~ Michael Jordan
"I play to win, whether during practice or a real game." ~ Michael Jordan
"Just play. Have fun. Enjoy the game." ~ Michael Jordan
"I've always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come." ~ Michael Jordan
"I realized that if I was going to achieve anything in life I had to be aggressive. I had to get out there and go for it... I know fear is an obstacle for some people, but it's an illusion to me." ~ Michael Jordan
"There was never any fear for me, no fear of failure. If I miss a shot, so what?" ~ Michael Jordan
"Work ethics eliminates fear." ~ Michael Jordan
"A loss is not a failure until you make an excuse." ~ Michael Jordan
"Don't be like me. Be better than me. That's the goal." ~ Michael Jordan
"I've always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. I don't do things half-heartedly. Because I know if I do, then I can expect half-hearted results." ~ Michael Jordan
"When I step onto the court, I'm ready to play. If you're going up against me, you'd better be ready. If you're not going to compete, I will dominate you." ~ Michael Jordan
"Any fear is an illusion. You think something is standing in your way, but nothing is really there. What is there is an opportunity to do your best and gain some success." ~ Michael Jordan
"Sometimes, things may not go your way, but the effort should be there every single night." ~ Michael Jordan
"I don't do things half-heartedly. Because I know if I do, I can expect half-hearted results. Most people get it the honest way by setting their goals and committing themselves to achieving their goals. That's the only way I did it anyway. Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships." ~ Michael Jordan
"The key to success is failure" ~ Michael Jordan
"It's always been said that when I can't find a way to do anything, I will find a way to do it." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'm not afraid to take a step and if I fall, I fall. I pick myself up and move on. If we can all learn one thing in life, it's don't be afraid to take on something that you believe you're capable of achieving." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'm not a Twitterer, I'm not a twerker, I'm not a Facebooker. I am a ... nothin' ... I'm old school." ~ Michael Jordan
"My mother is my root, my foundation. She planted the seed that I base my life on, and that is the belief that the ability to achieve starts in your mind." ~ Michael Jordan
"Every time I feel tired while I am exercising and training, I close my eyes to see that picture, to see that list with my name. This usually motivates me to work again." ~ Michael Jordan
"Failure builds muscle, determination, and dreams." ~ Michael Jordan
"Once I made a decision, I never thought about it again." ~ Michael Jordan
"No brain, no gain. Stay in school." ~ Michael Jordan
"I am competing with what I am capable of." ~ Michael Jordan
"When I got cut from the varsity team as a sophomore in high school, I learned something. I knew I never wanted to feel that bad again. I never wanted to have that taste in my mouth, that hole in my stomach. So I set a goal of becoming a starter on the varsity." ~ Michael Jordan
"The game of basketball has been everything to me. My place of refuge, place I've always gone where I needed comfort and peace. It's been the site of intense pain and the most intense feelings of joy and satisfaction. It's a relationship that has evolved over time, given me the greatest respect and love for the game." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you're trying to achieve, there will be roadblocks. I've had them; everybody has had them" ~ Michael Jordan
"Confidence allows you to progress in something you're attempting to accomplish, whether it's playing basketball or baseball or whether it's trying to succeed in business." ~ Michael Jordan
"If it turns out that my best wasn't good enough, at least I won't look back and say that I was afraid to try; failure makes me work even harder." ~ Michael Jordan
"Being nervous isn't bad. It just means something important is happening." ~ Michael Jordan
"You have competition every day because you set such high standards for yourself that you have to go out every day and live up to that." ~ Michael Jordan
"learning 's a gift, even when "pain" ,s your teacher!" ~ Michael Jordan
"There is no 'i' in team but there is in win." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'm all about challenges and seeing if I can go out and see if I can achieve something. If at the end of the day I do it, great. If I don't, I can live with myself." ~ Michael Jordan
"Obstacles don't have to stop you." ~ Michael Jordan
"Since I've been in chiropractic, I've improved by leaps and bounds both mentally and physically." ~ Michael Jordan
"I know what's within me even if you can't see it yet...I have something more important than courage, I have patience. I will become what I know I am." ~ Michael Jordan
"It's not how hard you pushed along the way. It's having something in you to finish." ~ Michael Jordan
"People ask me if I could fly, I said, 'yeah....' for a little while." ~ Michael Jordan
"My attitude going into training camp as a rookie was to impress. I wanted to impress my teammates, my coaches, the owners, everybody. I wanted them to say, ?This kid is special. This kid has the right mind, the right skills, the right motivation?." ~ Michael Jordan
"My Father... He was there when I didn't understand, he was there when I was wrong, he was there when I cried, he was there when I lied. For some reason my dad was always there, when I needed him the most. His love was never ending. And now that he's gone there is an emptiness in my world, but not in my heart." ~ Michael Jordan
"Maybe it’s my own fault. Maybe I led you to believe it was easy when it wasn’t. Maybe I made you think my highlights started at the free throw line, and not in the gym. Maybe I made you think that every shot I took was a game winner. That my game was built on flash, and not fire. Maybe it’s my fault that you didn’t see that failure gave me strength; that my pain was my motivation. Maybe I led you to believe that basketball was a God given gift, and not something I worked for every single day of my life. Maybe I destroyed the game. Or maybe you’re just making excuses." ~ Michael Jordan
"Fundamentals were the most crucial part of my game in the NBA. Everything I did, everything I achieved, can be traced back to the way I approached the fundamentals." ~ Michael Jordan
"Be optimistic about everything in life." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you think and achieve as a team, the individual accolades will take care of themselves. Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships." ~ Michael Jordan
"The game is my wife. It demands loyalty and responsibility, and it gives me back fulfillment and peace." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'll quit competing when my heart quits beating" ~ Michael Jordan
"Enjoy every minute of life. Never second-guess life." ~ Michael Jordan
"A leader can't make excuses. There has to be quality in everything you do. Off the court, on the court, in the classroom." ~ Michael Jordan
"I set another goal, a reasonable, manageable goal that I could realistically achieve if I worked hard enough. I approached everything step by step." ~ Michael Jordan
"I've had tendinitis since college." ~ Michael Jordan
"Life is a sport...drink it up." ~ Michael Jordan
"The minute you get away from fundamentals – whether its proper technique, work ethic or mental preparation – the bottom can fall out of your game, your schoolwork, your job, whatever you’re doing." ~ Michael Jordan
"The best evaluation I can make of a player is to look in his eyes and see how scared they are." ~ Michael Jordan
"You have to be un-compromised in your level of commitment to whatever you are doing, or it can disappear as fast as it appeared. Commitment cannot be compromised by rewards." ~ Michael Jordan
"When I worked on my game, that's what I thought about. When it happened, I set another goal, a reasonable, manageable goal that I could realistically achieve if I worked hard enough. I guess I approached it with the end in mind. I knew exactly where I wanted to go, and I focused on getting there." ~ Michael Jordan
"When I worked on my game, that's what I thought about. When it happened, I set another goal, a reasonable, manageable goal that I could realistically achieve if I worked hard enough. I guess I approached it with the end in mind. I knew exactly where I wanted to go, and I focused on getting there." ~ Michael Jordan
"I missed 9000 shots in my career, lost almost 300 games and missed the shot to win the game 26 times." ~ Michael Jordan
"The game has its ups and downs, but you can never lose focus of your individual goals and you can't let yourself be beat because of lack of effort." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'm a firm believer in goal setting. Step by step. I can't see any other way of accomplishing anything." ~ Michael Jordan
"Success doesn't stop when you get there" ~ Michael Jordan
"What is love? Love is playing every game as if it's your last!" ~ Michael Jordan
"I knew where I wanted to go, what kind of player I wanted to become and I focused on getting there." ~ Michael Jordan
"My body could stand the crutches but my mind couldn't stand the sideline." ~ Michael Jordan
"I realize that I'm black, but I like to be viewed as a person, and that's everybody's wish... I try to be a role model for black kids, white kids, yellow kids, green kids. This is what I felt was good about my personality." ~ Michael Jordan
"The greatest people that ever lived were also the greatest failures. They just didn’t let those failures affect them like they do most." ~ Michael Jordan
"Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise" ~ Michael Jordan
"There is no such thing as a perfect basketball player, and I don't believe there is only one greatest player either." ~ Michael Jordan
"Failure is acceptable. but not trying is a whole different ball park." ~ Michael Jordan
"Basketball isn't just about the bright lights, packed arenas and highlight reels. Basketball is a way of life. Basketball is a relationship between you and the ball, you and your teammates. If you love the game, nobody can take that from you." ~ Michael Jordan
"Basketball isn't just about the bright lights, packed arenas and highlight reels. Basketball is a way of life. Basketball is a relationship between you and the ball, you and your teammates. If you love the game, nobody can take that from you." ~ Michael Jordan
"Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it." ~ Michael Jordan
"Failure gave me strength. Pain was my motivation" ~ Michael Jordan
"I want to be perceived as a guy who played his best in all facets, not just scoring. A guy who loved challenges." ~ Michael Jordan
"I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot... when you think about the consequences you always think of a negative result." ~ Michael Jordan
"There have been times when I have failed. But there have never been times when I thought I would fail" ~ Michael Jordan
"Accept a loss as a learning experience, and never point fingers at your teammates" ~ Michael Jordan
"I truly love the game; I wouldn't be playing if I didn't love the game. I'm not getting paid astronomical dollars; it's truly for the love of the game of basketball." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you don't back it up with performance and hard work, talking doesn't mean a thing." ~ Michael Jordan
"If I have an agenda or a goal, no one is going to deter me from what I want to do." ~ Michael Jordan
"Being afraid on the court, means you're not confident of your skills" ~ Michael Jordan
"The basketball court for me, during a game, is the most peaceful place I can imagine. On the basketball court, I worry about nothing. When I'm out there, no one can bother me." ~ Michael Jordan
"Once I get the ball, you're at my mercy. There is nothing you can say or do about it. I own the ball." ~ Michael Jordan
"Suddenly all is quiet. The other nine players? They're all moving in slow motion! I'm at normal speed! I know where everyone's going even before they know themselves. The basket is huge, maybe six feet across! How can I miss? It's like throwing a rock into a pond." ~ Michael Jordan
"Isn't (life) all about trying?" ~ Michael Jordan
"We're beating a lot of poor teams. So what? We won a lot of games last year, too. Will Horace and Bill still be playing at this level in the playoffs...Can Pip keep it up?" ~ Michael Jordan
"If I had stood at the free-throw line and thought about 10 million people watching me on the other side of the camera lens, I couldn't have made anything. So I mentally tried to put myself in a familiar place. I thought about all those times I shot free throws in practice and went through the same motion, the same technique that I had used thousands of times. You forget about the outcome. You know you are doing the right things. So you relax and perform." ~ Michael Jordan
"I hope the millions of people I've touched have the optimism and desire to share their goals and hard work and persevere with a positive attitude." ~ Michael Jordan
"Other than my parents, no one had a bigger influence on my life than Coach Smith. He was more than a coach – he was my mentor, my teacher, my second father. Coach was always there for me whenever I needed him and I loved him for it. In teaching me the game of basketball, he taught me about life. My heart goes out to Linnea and their kids. We've lost a great man who had an incredible impact on his players, his staff and the entire UNC family." ~ Michael Jordan
"My most memorable dunk, that I think about very, very often, is the Patrick Ewing dunk." ~ Michael Jordan
"It's heavy duty to try to do everything and please everybody . . . My job was to go out there and play the game of basketball as best I can, ... People may not agree with that . . . I can't live with what everyone's impression of what I should or what I shouldn't do." ~ Michael Jordan
"You have to be able to say, OK, that happened back then. Now let's take it from here and see what happens. It would be very easy to hate people for the rest of your life, and some people have done that. You've got to deal with what's happening now and try to make things better." ~ Michael Jordan
"The good part about being famous is being able to help people. The hard part is every day you have to be in a good mood, because that is what people expect. You learn to get good at it." ~ Michael Jordan
"Patience. I will become what I know I am." ~ Michael Jordan
"Because I want every kid to be viewed as a person rather than as a member of a certain race does not mean that I'm not black enough. . . . Do they want me to be positive just for black kids and negative for everybody else?" ~ Michael Jordan
"Republicans buy sneakers, too." ~ Michael Jordan
"You know what I think? Very few people play because they love the game. Most of them play because they make good money. They keep playing because of the money. I could care less about it. If I don't love the game, no check is going to keep me playing." ~ Michael Jordan
"People say they wish they were Michael Jordan. OK, do it for a year. Do it for two years. Do it for five years. When you get past the fun part, then go do the part where you get into cities at three a.m. and you have fifteen people waiting for autographs when you're as tired as hell." ~ Michael Jordan
"It's easier for me to get ready for a game on the road because you're expected to lose when you play away from home. That's a challenge to right there and that perks my competitive juices." ~ Michael Jordan
"I want people to understand, gambling is not a bad thing if you do it within the framework of what it's meant to be, which is fun and entertaining." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'd take 12 guys who had a strong passion for the game over 12 guys who don't respect the game." ~ Michael Jordan
"I make shoes for white suburban kids, not the poor black kids. That would be like opening a restaurant for people without stomachs." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'm not out there sweating for three hours every day just to find out what it feels like to sweat." ~ Michael Jordan
"I realize that I'm black, but I like to be viewed as a person, and this is everybody's wish." ~ Michael Jordan
"I will not quit this game because of what the media has done to me." ~ Michael Jordan
"I would tell players to relax and never think about what's at stake. Just think about the basketball game. If you start to think about who is going to win the championship, you've lost your focus." ~ Michael Jordan
"Heart is what separates the good from the great." ~ Michael Jordan
"If I thought of the number of people who were watching me as I got ready to shoot, I?d miss it." ~ Michael Jordan
"I have failed many times, and that's why I am a success." ~ Michael Jordan
"Limits, like fear, is often an illusion." ~ Michael Jordan
"I play to win, whether during practice or a real game. And I will not let anything get in the way of me and my competitive enthusiasm to win." ~ Michael Jordan
"When I lose the sense of motivation and the sense to prove something as a basketball player, it's time for me to move away from the game." ~ Michael Jordan
"Each time I step on the basketball court, I never know what will happen. I live for the moment. I play for the moment." ~ Michael Jordan
"Anyone who would argue that this third-generatio n MDX is an SUV might as well belong to the Flat Earth Society. The 2014 Acura MDX is the perfect expression of the modern car - capable, spacious, and friendly to drive." ~ Michael Jordan
"I believe greatness is an evolutionary process that changes and evolves era to era." ~ Michael Jordan
"Live the moment for the moment." ~ Michael Jordan
"I've never been afraid to fail." ~ Michael Jordan
"In any investment, you expect to have fun and make money." ~ Michael Jordan
"I dont take pictures with Niggas" ~ Michael Jordan
"I have failed many times, but I have never gone into a game expecting myself to fail." ~ Michael Jordan
"It's a habit of mine now, noticing labels, logos, shoes." ~ Michael Jordan
"I just feel that at this particular time in my career, I've reached the pinnacle of my career, I've achieved a lot in that short amount of time, if you want to call it short, but I just feel that I don't have anything else to myself to prove." ~ Michael Jordan
"I wasn't really a work conscious type of person." ~ Michael Jordan
"I want to play for years." ~ Michael Jordan
"I would never play an extra year for money. I play the game because I love it. I just so happen to get paid. If I don't feel I still enjoy the game, I can care less what a year is worth. I'm not going to play the game just because of money." ~ Michael Jordan
"I never thought a role model should be negative." ~ Michael Jordan
"I built my talents on the shoulders of someone else's talent." ~ Michael Jordan
"You believe an eye for an eye until you are put in that situation. If they kill those guys, it really doesn't mean much to me. My father is gone." ~ Michael Jordan
"I smoked my first cigar in 1991, when we won the championship. Up to that point, I had never smoked a cigar, never smoked anything." ~ Michael Jordan
"When I step onto the court, I don't have to think about anything. If I have a problem off the court, I find that after I play, my mind is clearer and I can come up with a better solution. It's like therapy. It relaxes me and allows me to solve problems." ~ Michael Jordan
"I don't go out and just try to score. I score because there is an opportunity to score." ~ Michael Jordan
"When I was young, I had to learn the fundamentals of basketball. You can have all the physical ability in the world, but you still have to know the fundamentals." ~ Michael Jordan
"I think school is very important and I personally had a great experience at North Carolina, which helped shape me as a basketball player and a person. Every once in a while, you will have a player who can make the jump and have an immediate impact on the professional level, but most of the players who come out would absolutely benefit from going to college." ~ Michael Jordan
"I don't know about flying, but sometimes it feels like I have these little wings on my feet." ~ Michael Jordan
"I want to be the bridge to the next generation." ~ Michael Jordan
"Not every flying hero has a cape." ~ Michael Jordan
"I do not have a problem, I enjoy gambling, but I think people are trying to make it seem like I have a problem, because people really don't know." ~ Michael Jordan
"We're not winning because of talent. We're just beating bad teams." ~ Michael Jordan
"If I had been playing for money I would have complained a long time ago that I was underpaid." ~ Michael Jordan
"Even though, physically, I can't do it, the mind says, 'Yeah, I can still do it,' and I still think I can do it better than most in the NBA, … Driven From Within." ~ Michael Jordan
"Being Michael Jordan means acting the same as I always have." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you pass the ball to Bill Cartwright, you'll never get the ball from me." ~ Michael Jordan
"But my drive to win is so great ... I just step over that line. ... It's very embarrassing, ... one of the things you totally regret. So you look at yourself in the mirror and say, 'I was stupid.'" ~ Michael Jordan
"It's hard to say if the NBA is hurt by the influx of younger players, but it's definitely impacted the league." ~ Michael Jordan
"You're an idiot. You've screwed up every play we ever ran. You're too stupid to even remember the plays. We ought to get rid of you." ~ Michael Jordan
"I went to a bookstore to try to find a book. The bottom line is, it all comes by trial and error. It was scary and exciting at first you don't know what to expect. But once you look into your child's eyes, you forget about that." ~ Michael Jordan
"Purchasing the Bobcats is the culmination of my post-playing career goal of becoming the majority owner of an NBA franchise." ~ Michael Jordan
"I've failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed. Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen. I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying." ~ Michael Jordan
"The NBA is the strongest professional sports league in the world. The league and the game is bigger than any one person, Michael Jordan included, and they always will be. I hope that today players, especially our young players, continue to recognize that simple fact. Nothing is more important than the game itself and the fans who support it." ~ Michael Jordan
"I just feel that my competitive drive is far greater than anyone else that I've met, and I think that I thrive on that." ~ Michael Jordan
"How many times have your parents told you not to do things, and the next thing you know, you go do it? And you realized you shouldn't have done it." ~ Michael Jordan
"If you love the game, nobody can take that from you." ~ Michael Jordan
"It is nerve-wracking watching my kids' games." ~ Michael Jordan
"Ultimately, if you can say that I'm a bad owner and we're winning championships, I can live with that. But if we're not making the playoffs and we're spending and losing money, then I have to look in the mirror and say maybe I'm not taking the necessary steps to doing what it takes to run an organization." ~ Michael Jordan
"There's only one Michael Jordan." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'm retired 99.9%. Of course, there always is that .1%." ~ Michael Jordan
"When I was playing before I retired, I never really understood the appreciation and the respect that people gave me. People had treated me like a god or something, and that was very embarrassing." ~ Michael Jordan
"The players today reflect how much the game has evolved and changed both in style and culture. [...] The game now has a wider appeal to a larger market." ~ Michael Jordan
"I can't speak for the future. I have no crystal ball." ~ Michael Jordan
"I took cooking classes when I was younger; girls weren't interested in me, and I thought I may be alone for the rest of my life." ~ Michael Jordan
"Winning isn't always championships." ~ Michael Jordan
"For a competitive junkie like me, golf is a great solution because it smacks you in the face every time you think you have accomplished something. That to me has taken over a lot of the energy and competitiveness for basketball." ~ Michael Jordan
"My fellow Wilmington, North Carolina native Meadowlark Lemon is a true national treasure. I watched him play for the Harlem Globetrotters when I was growing up and his skill with the basketball and dedication to the game were an inspiration not only to me, but to kids all around the world." ~ Michael Jordan
"It's absolutely wrong that I don't want guys to challenge me. And the people who say that aren't in the room." ~ Michael Jordan
"I was in Chicago in 1994 and at this time I had no thoughts of coming back and playing the game of basketball, Bryon Russell came over to me and said, "Why'd you quit? You know I could guard you." When I did come back in 1995 and we played Utah in '96, I'm at the center circle and Bryon Russell is standing next to me. I said, "You remember what you said in 1994 about, 'I think I can guard you, I can shut you down, I would love to play against you?' Well, you're about to get your chance." ~ Michael Jordan
"I am privileged to have played basketball." ~ Michael Jordan
"I can remember a game, we were down with about 5 to 10 points, I go off about 25 points, we come back and win the game, we're walking off the floor. Tex (Winter) looks at me and says "There's no "I" in team!" I looked at Tex and say, "There's not, but there's an 'I' in win!" ~ Michael Jordan
"We had to be to the stadium at six o'clock for home games, and traffic was so bad it would take us an hour and fifteen or an hour and thirty minutes to drive. So now I'm sitting in a car for almost an hour and a half and I'm very tense. I'm worried about the traffic. So I started smoking a cigar going to the games." ~ Michael Jordan
"Do I need my number retired throughout the course of the league to acknowledge what I've done? No." ~ Michael Jordan
"I know the signs of scaredness." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'm sorry to see it end." ~ Michael Jordan
"I'd like to be settled into somewhat of a normal life. Somewhat. I know it's never going to be completely normal." ~ Michael Jordan
"In reality, I never want to grow up." ~ Michael Jordan
"It's probably a twelve-day. He needs two days to wake up." ~ Michael Jordan
"I Own the guy guarding me" ~ Michael Jordan
"I failed so therefore I succeed." ~ Michael Jordan
"In college I never realized the opportunities available to a pro athlete. I've been given the chance to meet all kinds of people, to travel and expand my financial capabilities, to get ideas and learn about life, to create a world apart from basketball." ~ Michael Jordan
"Playing sick. That is so hard to do. It has to be a total mental challenge, as well as the physical challenge." ~ Michael Jordan
"I hate being out there with those garbage men. They don't get you the ball." ~ Michael Jordan
"I heave the basketball; I know it sails in a parabola, exhibiting perfect symmetry, which is interrupted by the basket. It's funny, but it is always interrupted by the basket." ~ Michael Jordan
"I won't have any competitive instincts in any sports, other than golf. I can't see being competitive in sports any more." ~ Michael Jordan
"It takes a hell of a lot for a man to put up with me. I can be a handful." ~ Michael Jordan
"I am free to make anything I want as long as I think it will sell." ~ Michael Jordan
"As athletes, we're used to reacting quickly. Here, it's 'come, stop, come, stop.' There's a lot of downtime. That's the toughest part of the day." ~ Michael Jordan
"Basketball isn't my job." ~ Michael Jordan
"There will be a player greater than me." ~ Michael Jordan
"If I have something and move forward, it is only my weakness, which I hate and turn into my strength. You are not lost as long as you do not give up!" ~ Michael Jordan
"I viewed it as a business, but I always viewed it as a game. An opportunity to show my skills, my basketball skills, amongst the best in the world." ~ Michael Jordan
"People can fly. Some people fly higher than others, that's all." ~ Michael Jordan
"I think most micro-brewers/craft-brewers are similar in that they enjoy making something themselves and at the end of the day they can enjoy the fruit of their labor. Most people really enjoy the process of making beer and like the industry as a whole. We often are passionate about what we do and enjoy talking to people about the art and science of making beer." ~ Michael Jordan
"It doesn't matter who scores. If you have an opportunity to score, you score." ~ Michael Jordan
"You remember the [remarks] you made in 1994 about, 'I think I can guard you, I can shut you down, I would love to play against you?' Well, you're about to get your chance." ~ Michael Jordan
"Even when I'm old and grey, I won't be able to play it, but I'll still love the game." ~ Michael Jordan
"I think the players win the championship, and the organization has something to do with it, don't get me wrong. But don't try to put the organization above the players." ~ Michael Jordan
"Gambling is legal and betting is legal, for what I bet." ~ Michael Jordan
"I know what I would do if I were coach. I'd determine our strengths and weaknesses and utilize them. And it's pretty clear what our strength is." ~ Michael Jordan
"Number 45 doesn't explode like Number 23 used to." ~ Michael Jordan
"Can I still dunk... Are you stupid?" ~ Michael Jordan
"Sometimes I wonder what it will be like to look back on all this. Whether it will seem real." ~ Michael Jordan
"Drugs have been in the game for a long time. They were there when I was in college, and even in high school. It's in life. It's in business. It's everywhere." ~ Michael Jordan
"When I play against someone that's new in the league, I make him respect me. They may have heard about me, but now you get to see me actually in front of you. That drives me." ~ Michael Jordan
"I basically expect anything. Isn't that wild? I used to surprise myself a lot: certain moves, how I'd get out of trouble. But at some point, you accept the talent that you have, you accept your creativity." ~ Michael Jordan