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.

Patience. I will become what I know I am.

The best come from the worst

Not every flying hero has a cape.

My best skill was that I was coachable. I was a sponge and aggressive to learn.

I didn't come here to be average.

You don't show up on game day and expect to be great. Greatness happens <br /> in practice. You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.

The harder I prepare, the luckier I seem to get.

learning 's a gift, even when \'pain\' ,s your teacher!

Focus like a laser, not a flashlight

Be optimistic about everything in life.

Its better to shoot and miss, then to let time run out and wonder what if

Sometimes a winner is just a dreamer who never gave up.

I have failed many times, and that's why I am a success.

Being nervous isn't bad. It just means something important is happening.

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.

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.

I am competing with what I am capable of.

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.

I'm not a Twitterer, I'm not a twerker, I'm not a Facebooker. I am a ... nothin' ... I'm old school.

I dont take pictures with Niggas

I make shoes for white suburban kids, not the poor black kids. That would be like opening a restaurant for people without stomachs.

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.

Another day, another opportunity to prove everyone who doubts you wrong.

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.

A loss is not a failure until you make an excuse.

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.

Since I've been in chiropractic, I've improved by leaps and bounds both mentally and physically.

All I knew is that I NEVER wanted to be AVERAGE.

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.