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The most important measure of how good a game I played was how much better I’d made my teammates play.
Bill Russell
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Interpretation

What this quote means

True success in sports is defined by how much one can uplift their teammates.

Bill Russell emphasizes that individual performance in a game is secondary to the impact one has on their teammates' performance. He suggests that the true measure of greatness in a player is their ability to enhance the skills and effectiveness of those around them, highlighting the importance of collaboration and teamwork in achieving success.

Themes

TeamworkLeadershipSuccessPerformanceTeammates

In practice

Example use cases

In a sports team meeting to motivate players before a big game.

More from Bill Russell

The idea is not to block every shot. The idea is to make your opponent believe that you might block every shot.
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My father once told me that anyone who worked for three dollars an hour owed it to himself to put in four dollars' worth of work.
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Commitment separates those who live their dreams from those who live their lives regretting the opportunities they have squandered.
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People say it was the greatest individual rivalry they've ever seen. I agree with that. Let me assure you that if either Wilt's or Russ' coach had ever told one of them he couldn't guard the other guy, he would have lost that player forever.
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To me, the most important part of winning is joy. You can win without joy, but winning that’s joyless is like eating in a four-star restaurant when you’re not hungry. Joy is a current of energy in your body, like chlorophyll or sunlight, that fills you up and makes you naturally want to do your best.
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Concentration and mental toughness are the margins of victory.
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Quote by Bill Russell | QuoteProject