Gerald Green Quotes

I've been lucky to have great coaching, great teammates, and a desire to keep getting better. That, slowly over time, helped me grow from an average high school player to the NBA.

To be successful in anything, you have to have a passion for it, and that leads to being enthusiastic and demanding. I didn't have it for history. So I wouldn't have been a good teacher in that area. But I had it for basketball. And that's what coaching is at every level: it's about teaching.

I'm really proud of my coaches and the people I have training with me.

The idea of playing the point and leading a team to the NBA championship is what drove me to get up every day and work on my game as a kid.

I enjoyed my 15 years at the top, and now I enjoy watching the current crop. What I did, maybe they can't do, and what they do, perhaps I couldn't do. It's like that. I wanted to simply be the best. On a professional level, I wanted to be No. 1, and I worked hard to be that.

I love doing what I do. I'm a born mentor. I've launched so many people's careers. I worked hard.

Basketball is my passion, and I love it, and I love to see my players succeed. I'm here for them and my children. That's my passion.

I might not be Shaq, but I can be Kobe, you know?

Deacon Jones has been the most inspirational person in my football career.

He's helped me do so much in my career, helped me be the player that I am. If there's no Larry Brown, then there's no MVP, Allen Iverson.

I know Penny Toler and coach Ross have worked hard to put together a strong team this year, and I am ready to start the season with my teammates.

There were high school coaches such as Charles Boston that took me under his wing and taught me the fundamentals of football. And when I went to college there was Robert Hill who took me there and he showed me what hard work and determination would do if you put forth the effort and you take a little time.

My dad used to wake me up at 5:30 in the morning and hit me ground balls and tell me, 'Don't be afraid to excel. Don't be afraid to be great.'

If there was no Bill Bowerman, there would have been no me. He had about as much of an impact on my life as any one person could have. He taught me about competition and ingrained it in me. He taught me not to praise ordinary performances.

Who cares and remembers if my last film was a success? I need to work harder.

I've always said I aspire to follow the likes of John Terry, Michael Dawson and Rio Ferdinand. I always watch what they do and try and learn from them.

If I had coached in high school for 60 years, I would have loved it. Getting to the top was not a goal. I welcomed the opportunities, but I just believed do the best doggone job you can, and good things will happen.

Guy Lewis was all about efficiency. He was a great motivator. He got real talent and taught his players how he wanted them to play: hard and aggressive!

I'm sure Mourinho will make me a better player and a better person.

I don't think I'm any different than most coaches, honestly. Maybe Steve Kerr. The guy never loses.

From an early age, I tried to take in all the instructions of all the coaches I had.

I want to stay for a long time and leave a mark so the young generation can aspire to be at the top like me. I love the sport, and that's what drives me.

If you can provide value somewhere and have a coach who believes in you and creates opportunities for you, it's so important to continue to try to excel.

LeBron James, I just love watching him play. I love his work ethic and all the things he stands for.

Right from the start of my career I was surrounded by people like Jacques Kallis, Mark Boucher and Graeme Smith, who gave 100 percent in every performance.