In its 100+ years of existence, the sport of basketball has seen its share of coaching greats. This inventive bunch has transformed the game into the fast-paced global sport it is today.

Every superstar in every era and at every level saw his or her legacy strengthened by his head coach. Though they don’t score the points or play defense, coaches set the foundation for success. Some have been wildly inventive offensive minds, while others are defensive geniuses, but all of them know how to mold players into cohesive, winning units.If you want to learn the deepest lessons about winning basketball and championship teams, you could do worse than listen to the advice the best coaches in the NBA and NCAA D1 have to offer.

Listed below are quotes from eight Hall of Fame coaches, six with the greatest number of wins at their level and the two – one from the NBA and one major college coach — with the most championships.

Listen and learn from the greatest — the Zenmaster, Coach K, the General, the Wizard of Westwood and their illustrious peers. Each is speaking in his own voice about the subtleties of team chemistry and winning basketball games. And, boy, do they know how to win. Between these eight men, they’ve won 30 championships and 8,501 games:

 

1. “Goals should be realistic, attainable, and shared among all members of the team.” – Mike Krzyzewski, 1016 wins, 4 national titles

2. “The key is not the will to win… everybody has that. It is the will to prepare to win that is important.“ – Bob Knight, 889 wins, 3 national titles

3. “What to do with a mistake – recognize it, admit it, learn from it, forget it.” – Dean Smith, 879 wins, 2 national titles

4. “Remember, results aren’t the criteria for success — it’s the effort made for achievement that is most important.”  – John Wooden, 664 wins, 10 national titles

5. “You have a lot of ups and downs in coaching, especially, but I can’t remember any bad times at this point. I mean, they’re all good. A lot of tears when you lose, a lot of down times, but I can’t remember any of them. They’re all positive now. Even the bad times were good.” – Don Nelson, 1335 wins

6. “If you can’t go through it, find a way around it. Don’t spend all your time banging your head.” – Lenny Wilkens, 1332 wins, 1 championship

7. “Heart is what makes a difference.” – Jerry Sloan, 1221 wins

8. “I think the most important thing about coaching is that you have to have a sense of confidence about what you’re doing.” – Phil Jackson, 1155 wins, 11 championships

 

These coaches were clearly spectacular at what they did. Keep their basketball quotes in mind to help yourself succeed in coaching and in life!

 

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