Phil Jackson Quotes & Sayings

I'm a patient person. I think that's one thing that I feel comfortable I can deal with - the downfall and the errors, as long as I see progress and people trying. — Phil Jackson

Basketball is a sport that involves the subtle interweaving of players at full speed to the point where they are thinking and moving as one. — Phil Jackson

The NBA has made a real issue about really making these superstars the premium that everybody wants to go to. That's their calling card and their marketing tool. But the coaches at the other end of the sphere are trying to make everybody on the team, even nine, 10, 11, 12, just as important, and have a real role that's meaningful. — Phil Jackson

I don't believe in curfews, because you can't treat men like they were boys without forfeiting a certain level of trust. — Phil Jackson

Winning is about moving into the unknown and creating something new. — Phil Jackson

The bigger your head, the easier to fill your shoes. — Phil Jackson

An acrobatic dunk will make it onto Sports Center. A simple, unspectacular bounce pass in the rhythm of the offense will not. System basketball has been replaced by players who want to be the system. — Phil Jackson

Pau is one of the best big men in the game. I mean, Pau Gasol is going to be in the Hall of Fame. — Phil Jackson

When I was young, I was dedicated to become a minister - my brothers and I were formally brought in front of the congregation in a dedication ceremony, where we were dedicated to the future service of God. — Phil Jackson

If you have a clear mind ... you won't have to search for direction. Direction will come to you. — Phil Jackson

I always tell the players, "We are in the business that's very much like a marathon race only we're gonna be doing it for 260-something days or so." And the race is something you get ready to do. There's gonna be some trial inside of there, but you put yourself through it because ultimately it brings a lot of meaning to your life, it gives a lot of energy to what you're doing. — Phil Jackson

Always keep an open mind and a compassionate heart. — Phil Jackson

The problem with trading dominant players of that size is you never get in return what you've bargained away. — Phil Jackson

Make your work your play and your play your work. — Phil Jackson

I will have Derek Fisher wear all 5 of his rings the first time he comes in to talk to Carmelo. — Phil Jackson

The ideal way to win a championship is step by step. — Phil Jackson

My mother's families were Mennonites or Anabaptists that came to Minnesota from Russia. They were actually moving around Europe doing diking and lowland reclamation work, and they moved into Minnesota. — Phil Jackson

I thrive on challenges, and there is no more imposing challenge for someone in my profession than winning an NBA title. — Phil Jackson

If you meet the Buddha in the lane, feed him the ball. — Phil Jackson

It takes a number of critical factors to win an NBA championship, including the right mix of talent, creativity, intelligence, toughness, and of course, luck. But if a team doesn't have the most essential ingredient - love - none of those other factors matter. — Phil Jackson

The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team. — Phil Jackson

What moves me is watching young men bond together and tap into the magic that arises when they focus with their whole heart and soul on something greater than themselves. Once you've experienced that, it's something you never forget. — Phil Jackson

I probably would have no capability of absorbing a 60-defeat season as a coach. It would be a foreign experience. My whole career, even as a player, has been on winning basketball clubs and it just seems to have been a part of the make-up of what's been given me. That's what I've been given and that's what I've had to deal with. Some people can make fun of it or some people can have a good time with it, or some people can resent it. It's just what it is. — Phil Jackson

I gave it my body and mind, but I have kept my soul. — Phil Jackson

Basketball is a great mystery. You can do everything right. You can have the perfect mix of talent and the best system of offense in the game. You can devise a foolproof defensive strategy and prepare your players for every possible eventuality. But if the players don't have a sense of oneness as a group, your efforts won't pay off. And the bond that unites a team can be so fragile, so elusive. — Phil Jackson

No one plays this or any game perfectly. It's the guy who recovers from his mistakes who wins. — Phil Jackson

Basketball is sharing. — Phil Jackson

Coaching is about, "How do I get people to play at their peak level?" It is a spiritual quest. And if it's not that, you don't have a challenge, you don't have a mission. Forming a brotherhood and trying to move it forward - that's what coaching is. — Phil Jackson

Despite their tremendous talent, (NBA players) are still, by and large, young adults, seeking validation from an authority figure, and there is no greater authority figure on a team than the coach. Needless to say, in today's warped, self-indulgent climate, too many players couldn't care less about appeasing the coach. — Phil Jackson

The strength of the team lies within the individual. And the strength of the individual lies within the team — Phil Jackson

The book I selected for him was Corelli's Mandolin, a novel set on a small Greek island occupied by the Italian army during World War II. During the course of the story, the islanders have to accept the fact that they no longer control their own destiny and must come together and adapt to the new reality. In the end, they win by losing. — Phil Jackson

My father was the superintendent of the churches in the state of Montana. He was content in his beliefs. He befit the term 'true Christian.' He would turn the other cheek. He was truly a man of peace. — Phil Jackson

I'm a sports-watcher. I played football and baseball, coached baseball. So I watch those things. — Phil Jackson

You're only a success for the moment that you complete a successful act. — Phil Jackson

I think people forgot that there are still ways you can get the ball inside rather than just standing there and throwing the ball in. You have to have a system that makes all things work. — Phil Jackson

Good teams become great ones when the members trust each other enough to surrender the Me for the We. — Phil Jackson

I replaced three joints in my hips and one in my knee. I'm hoping that other knee doesn't have to be done. It's one of the toughest things to overcome. — Phil Jackson

In basketball - as in life - true joy comes from being fully present in each and every moment, not just when things are going your way. — Phil Jackson

As much as we pump iron and we run to build our strength up, we need to build our mental strength up ... so we can focus ... so we can be in concert with one another. — Phil Jackson

My dad always had this little sign on his desk: 'The bigger your head is, the easier your shoes are to fill'. He really drilled that in. — Phil Jackson

My parents were, had a marriage of passion, and the passion was about their religious beliefs. They were both immigrant families that - well, my father's family came as Puritans to Massachusetts. — Phil Jackson

Before a vision (dream) can become a reality, it must be owned by every member of the group. — Phil Jackson

I'm not going to coach again. I've done my coaching, and I think I can put that aside. — Phil Jackson

I'm not trying to find answers anymore. I'm trying to live what I know. — Phil Jackson

My first act after being named head coach of the Bulls was to formulate a vision for the team. I had to take into account not only what I wanted to achieve, but how I was going to get there. — Phil Jackson

You can't force your will on people. If you want them to act differently, you need to inspire them to change themselves — Phil Jackson

Basketball is a simple game. Your goal is penetration, get the ball close to the basket, and there are three ways to do that. Pass, dribble and offensive rebound. — Phil Jackson

If we can accept whatever hand we've been dealt - no matter how unwelcome - the way to proceed eventually becomes clear. — Phil Jackson

Coaching is salesmanship. Coaching is winning players over and convincing them they have to play together. It takes a team conviction to play together to make things work. — Phil Jackson

Basketball, unlike football with its prescribed routes, is an improvisational game, similar to jazz. If someone drops a note, someone else must step into the vacuum and drive the beat that sustains the team. — Phil Jackson

Not only is there more to life than basketball, there's a lot more to basketball than basketball. — Phil Jackson

Everybody has an opportunity to play a role, a playmaking role, so it makes it harder to coach. It takes a little more time. — Phil Jackson

Winning is important to me, but what brings me real joy is the experience of being fully engaged in whatever I'm doing. — Phil Jackson

The best part of basketball, for those people on the inside, is the bus going to the airport after you've won a game on an opponent's floor. It's been a very tough battle. And preferably, in the playoffs. And that feeling that you have, together as a group, having gone to an opponent's floor and won a very good victory, is as about as high as you can get. — Phil Jackson

The road to freedom is a beautiful system — Phil Jackson

Remember, Team, surrender the me for the we. — Phil Jackson

You have to be able to psychologically help your players, support-wise, be in touch with them, so I think managing people is very important. — Phil Jackson

You go in the weight room and you lift weights and you do all these things to strengthen your body. This is strengthening your mind. When you can stay focused and you can use that focus to always come back with your breath to center yourself, so that you're kind of floating in the moment, in the spirit. — Phil Jackson

For us tall people, the whole key is that your hips and your knees should form a right angle when you sit down. That's where backs and hips get to be problems for big guys. — Phil Jackson

The sign of a great player is how much he elevates his colleagues' performance. — Phil Jackson

If you give the future all your attention, the present will pass you by. — Phil Jackson

A coach's main job is to reawaken a spirit in which the players can blend together effortlessly. — Phil Jackson

Your problems never cease. They just change. — Phil Jackson

Like life, basketball is messy and unpredictable. It has its way with you, no matter how hard you try to control it. The trick is to experience each moment with a clear mind and open heart. When you do that, the game - and life - will take care of itself. — Phil Jackson

I think there's something about wanting to stand in the spotlight. I think the ball is a spotlight, for example, and I think they want to stand in that. I a lot of times see - LeBron is a guy that vacillates between wanting to do that and then wanting to get somebody else involved. — Phil Jackson

The winter's a little bit daunting in Montana. — Phil Jackson

Once you've done the mental work, there comes a point you have to throw yourself into the action and put your heart on the line. That means not only being brave, but being compassionate towards yourself, your teammates and your opponents. — Phil Jackson

The greatest carver does the least cutting. LAO-TZU — Phil Jackson

Tomorrow gives a beck'ning hand
I turn my face away; I'll not invite her to my home
I only love Today. — Phil Jackson

When the mind is allowed to relax, inspiration often follows. — Phil Jackson

Leadership is not about forcing your will on others. It's about mastering the art of letting go. — Phil Jackson

The most we can hope for is to create the best possible conditions for success, then let go of the outcome. The ride is a lot more fun that way. — Phil Jackson

People think I would never take on a team that has no legitimate chance to win a championship, This is one of the major misconceptions about me. Success can be measured in many different ways ... Either way, I would find the challenge invigorating. — Phil Jackson

I played hockey in North Dakota growing up and watch a lot of that. — Phil Jackson

In their groundbreaking book, Tribal Leadership, management consultants Dave Logan, John King, and Halee Fischer-Wright lay out the five stages of tribal development, which they formulated after conducting extensive research on small to midsize organizations. — Phil Jackson

My father was a man who didn't consider himself learned. He was a man who liked to be a farmer. He enjoyed his dairy farm and felt the calling. So there was a dedication. I was dedicated as a child to the service of God, and so there was this continual centering of a greater purpose than your own. — Phil Jackson

I think the most rewarding part of the job, and I think most coaches would say it, is practice. If you have it, a very good practice in which you have 12 guys participate, and they can really get something out of it, lose themselves in practice. — Phil Jackson

Wisdom is always an overmatch for strength. — Phil Jackson

There's a lot of chatter in basketball and, rightfully, you want players to be talking to each other ... But sometimes in practice, it gets too verbose ... so I tried to take things out of the ordinary and make them special so they'd understand the difference. — Phil Jackson

My philosophy is that you don't motivate players with speeches; you have motivated players that you draft. That's where they come in, and those are the guys that are competitive. You can not teach competitiveness. — Phil Jackson

I won't coach this team next year if he is still here. He won't listen to anyone. I've had it with this kid. — Phil Jackson

Approach the game with no preset agendas and you'll probably come away surprised at your overall efforts. — Phil Jackson

Yes, victory is sweet, but it doesn't necessarily make life any easier the next season or even the next day. — Phil Jackson

Love is the force that ignites the spirit and binds teams together. — Phil Jackson

He practiced against Kobe all of last year, so obviously it was sweet revenge for him. We deserved that. We didn't know who he was, we gave him up to Charlotte, we had no idea how good a player he was. — Phil Jackson