Basketball Defense Quotes & Sayings

Defense is one man guarding the ball and four others helping him — Mike Krzyzewski

There has never been a great 'silent' defense — Del Harris

You can't play any defense if the other team is on the foul line. — Mike Krzyzewski

Those to whom defense is not important will have the best seat in the game — Rick Majerus

Basketball also helps you learn to move your feet by playing defense and guarding guys, and that all carries over to playing football with staying square and having good footwork. — Calvin Pryor

We have a simple rule for switching. Anytime there is movement over the top of a screen, there has to be an automatic switch. If a blind pick is set on one of our defensive players, there has to be a switch. To play good pressure defense, you have to use the switch. — Ralph Miller

I believe that good defense embodies seven cardinal principle: reduce the number of your opponent's shots; force your opponent into low percentage shots; control everything within 18 feet; eliminate second shots; no easy baskets; point the ball on all long shots; and prevent the ball from going into the pivot man. — Adolph Rupp

If you're not talking, you're not playing defense — Doc Rivers

Defense is all about helping. No one can guard a good dribbler, You have to walk kids through how to help and then how to help the helper — Bobby Knight

We would love to have Gary down here. He's still tenacious on defense, and I know he still wants [a title]. And I'm the only guy in the world who can get him one. — Shaquille O'Neal

My philosophy of defense is to keep the pressure on an opponent until you get to his emotions — John Wooden

Winning is more related to good defense than good offense — Jack Ramsay

Basketball is like war in that offensive weapons are developed first, and it always takes a while for the defense to catch up. — Red Auerbach

Defense is what matters. Scoring doesn't interest me. — David Robinson

Yeah Ernie, its called defense, I mean I wouldn't know anything about it personally but I've heard about it through the grapevine. — Charles Barkley

In going for the last shot of the game most people wait too long to take the shot. Give yourself a chance to get the first shot and tap the ball in. Your players are normally inside the defense. — Norm Sloan

Defense can't guard two things in a row. — Chuck Daly

For us to be successful on defense, we must get back and stop the basketball, eliminate easy baskets, keep the ball out of the lane, and bother the shooters. — Dick Bennett

I knew Rick Pitino was going to make them play that outbreak, monkey defense. He's been doing it all his life. — Shaquille O'Neal

Good basketball always starts with good defense! — Bobby Knight

It's fun to play defense. It's fun to watch the opponent sweat on offense, start complaining to the officials, and eventually be taken out of the game because he's making so many offensive mistakes — Maury John

Once the Hack-a-Shaq works once, you know I'm going to see it again. The only thing worse for basketball than that defense is the Lack-a-Shaq offense, where I have to go to the bench because of foul trouble. There is no fun in that. — Shaquille O'Neal

If you want team play, you must stress defense. Defense makes players unselfish. — John Brady

As coaches we talk about two things: offense and defense. There is a third phase we neglect, which is more important. It's conversion from offense to defense and defense to offense. — Bobby Knight

In evaluating the way in which ball possessions are gained during the course of a game, we find that 60 to 80 percent of the possessions are gained by rebounding and after an opponent's score. Twenty percent come from opponents's error, and only 5 percent of the possessions come from steals and interceptions. A study of the way ball possessions are gained makes it seem highly impractical to base pressure defense on interceptions and steals. — Ralph Miller

When covering the man with the ball, the defense should be able to touch the ball with his hand. He should assume this touching position as the ball is being received. When the ball is received, the defense should discourage the pass into the post area. The hands should be kept up. Keeping the hands up reduces a tendency to foul and allows a player to move his hands quickly. — Ralph Miller

All great athletes essentially come to a fork in the road where they have to change their approach to succeed. It's a sign of intelligence and character. My college coach, Jack Hartman, made me play only defense for a full year in practice when I became academically ineligible for my junior year at Southern Illinois. Embarrassed, I thought at first about arguing with Coach Hartman over what I felt was a tremendous slight. But instead I started lifting weights and working so hard on my defense that my teammates hated to see me match up against them in practice. That was the turning point of my life, on and off the court. — Walt Frazier

I guess the way I describe it is when basketball players talk about being in the zone and they feel like they can't miss. That's the way a running back feels when the game is in slow-motion. It feels like every cut is right, every run is going to be at least 10 yards. You see what the defense is doing. You know what they're trying to do to you. It's awesome. — LaDainian Tomlinson

I blame Riley for my broken thumb, not Matt Geiger. That ain't defense Miami is playing. That's just chopping. I have no idea how his team gets away with it. I guess when you've been in the league 30 years you can do it. Respect, he gets it - he's like John Gotti. — Shaquille O'Neal

Defense doesn't break down on the help, it breaks down on the recovery. — Chuck Daly

In all the research you do as a coach, studying other coaches and championship-type situations, you find that all those teams combined talent with great defense. You've got to stop other teams to win. — Pat Riley

I think I'll always want to improve my defense. That's something that can always be better. Not saying it's bad now, just something you should always work on. — Carmelo Anthony

I asked them if it wasn't too much trouble, if I wasn't being too pushy, if they could execute what we were trying to do. And if it didn't make them too angry, if they also wanted to play some defense on the other end, that would be great. — Gregg Popovich

Players act like the floor is slanted; they run downhill on fast breaks and jog uphill when getting back on defense — Tates Locke

I wasn't a bad basketball player, but I was far from the world's greatest. Good defense, no offense - that was me. — Chuck Connors

If one of our players gets his second foul in the first half, then he must come out of the game and not re-enter until the second half. To play defense and not foul is an art that must be mastered if you are going to be successful. — Chuck Daly

Coaching staff: I know there's days you look at that film and you want to kill me. I'm not playing defense, taking bad shots, getting too many techs. But you always believe that I can be the guy. Through the tough times, you guys never left my side ... That's something that I really appreciate and I never want to take you guys for granted. I thank you so much for being part of my life. And not just on the basketball court, but giving me talks about growing as a man first, and a basketball player next. — Kevin Durant

My players on defense must have a hand-up on every shot. If not, they run sprints. — Rick Majerus

Offense sells tickets, defense wins games, rebounding wins championships. — Pat Summitt

I'm one of the best defenders to ever play basketball, so I'm still the first option on defense. — Metta World Peace

But I have to say this in defense of humankind: In no matter what era in history, including the Garden of Eden, everybody just got here. And, except for the Garden of Eden, there were already all these games going on that could make you act crazy, even if you weren't crazy to begin with. Some of the crazymaking games going on today are love and hate, liberalism and conservatism, automobiles and credit cards, golf, and girls' basketball. — Kurt Vonnegut

Winning squads emphasize fundamentals-pick and rolls,teamwork,and defense. They play with passion and they play hard. They move the ball, and when their players don't have it, they move well without the ball. They play with sagacity by exploiting mismatches. They gauge their opponents weaknesses and then attack them relentlessly. — Walt Frazier

We teach offense 5-0/5-5 (whole method) and defense by part (1-1/3-3). — Dick Bennett

It is not overwhelmingly difficult for a committed group of players with only average individual basketball skills to put together a very good team defense. — Del Harris

Your defense will save you on the nights that your offense isn't working. — Adolph Rupp

Criticize on defense and encourage on offense. — John Brady

I'm looking for activity. I put players in and take them out based on effort and defense, not making or missing shots — Doc Rivers

You have to make shots to win basketball games and we didn't do that. You also have to get back on defense, so it was a double-whammy. — Gregg Popovich

I was taught to play the game from a total team concept-to be able to do everything reasonably well and some things extraordinarily well. If I'm not shooting well, I'll try to be an asset in other ways-like defense, passing, rebounding, and hustle. — Rick Barry

Great defense consists of 3 R's: read, react, and rotate. — Peter P. Carr