When the crowd appreciates you it encourages you to be a little more daring I think.
I live my life trying to never appear to be a small man.
The key to success is to keep growing in all areas of life - mental emotional spiritual as well as physical.
In a lot of areas of my life particularly in my teenage years I began to think about the world and to think about the universe as being a part of my conscious everyday life.
I demand more from myself than anybody could ever expect.
I didn't want to become a reserve player or a bench player and it was time to move on and take on another challenge.
I think that my God-given physical attributes big hands and big feet the way that I'm built proportion-wise just made basketball the most inviting sport for me to play.
Because of the makeup of the NBA it cannot afford for the public to turn on them.
Attitude is altitude.
I had to spend countless hours above and beyond the basic time to try and perfect the fundamentals.
When I played the owners had the power. The prisoners are running the prison now not the warden. The warden is strong and he has say so but the balance of power is definitely with the players.
When handling the ball I always would look for daylight wherever there was daylight.
Right up until the time I retired at age 37 I felt like there were still things that I could do better.
If you don't do what's best for your body you're the one who comes up on the short end.
There's the typical books Moby Dick and I guess in my adult life I began to read biographies more than fiction. I started to want to relate to other people's lives things that had really happened.
You know just in terms of having to have a life on the road you know having the celebrity aspect be a burden for my family friends and extended family.
One of the commitments that I personally have now is to a diverse approach to buying businesses and the operation of those businesses.
I pulled the plug on it at a time that I thought was right for me to exit.
I am very proud to be featured especially when you consider the outstanding champions who have had this honor. It is great company to be in.
They are taking steps but they are baby steps.
If you're not doing what is best for your body you are the one who lose.
I came from a broken home so my mom was a major influence in my life.
As a kid I played a lot of one-on-none.
I think I was chosen by basketball although I never really physically got drafted to any team that I played for.
I started playing professional basketball in 1971 and I played professionally for five seasons before going to Philadelphia.
The biggest thing that I felt basketball could do for me was help me get a good education.
In 1981 at age 31 I was voted the best player in basketball and the most valuable player in the league.
I keep both eyes on my man. The basket hasn't moved on me yet.
Being a typical Pisces I might have experienced mood shifts but I don't remember any depression or needing to do anything or to have someone bring me out of being depressed.
That was just my own personal program: I didn't want to get too high over the good moments because I didn't want to be saddened and depressed when things didn't go as I had planned.
If you get depressed about being the second-best team in the world then you've got a problem.
I wanted to undertake the challenge of daring to be great.
Being a professional is doing the things you love to do on the days you don't feel like doing them.
I think I started learning lessons about being a good person long before I ever knew what basketball was. And that starts in the home it starts with the parental influence.
I grabbed 19 rebounds in my first professional game and somehow found a way to score 20 points. I felt real good about it. I felt that this was the beginning of something good.
My mom is one of 14 children. She's a great lady. She's a Taurus. Has been a profound influence in my life still is to this day. Born in meager surroundings in rural South Carolina.
But you know we have a very normal family. We've had our ups and downs. You know we've had our issues but we've had great cause for celebration.
LA Clippers should come to Louisville
I always try to keep a pretty conservative demeanor on the court.
One of the things in the back of my mind is that after my sports experience I never want to be totally consumed by any one endeavor other than my family life.
And I continued to grow until I was 25 years old.
Every team that I've played on I've either been the captain or co-captain.
I've always tried to tell myself that the work itself is the thing that win lose or draw the work is really what counts.
With the crowds on your side it's easier to play up to your potential.
You know we always tried to rationalize by saying you take the good you take the upside you got to deal with the downside you've to take the downside.
I demand more of myself than anyone else could ever expect.
Goals determine what your going to be
Goals determine what you're going to be.
Goals determine what you are going to be
If you've experienced having control you don't want to be moved to a subordinate position if you have your druthers.
You can feel the vibes feel the people pulling for you.
The first professional game that I ever played remains to me the most exciting moment of my professional career.
I firmly believe that respect is a lot more important and a lot greater than popularity.
To be great we need to win games we aren't supposed to win.
The ones who become stars or superstars are the ones who have a head on their shoulders and know how to use it.
To be an innovator you can't be worried about making mistakes.
It's better to stay too long than to leave too soon.
And from the first time I picked up a basketball at age eight - I had a lot of difficulty when I first picked up a basketball because I was a scrub - there were things that I liked about it.