I never took a position we were going to be a good ball club. I took the position we were going to be a winning ball club.
Interpretation
The focus should be on achieving victories rather than merely having potential.
Red Auerbach's quote emphasizes the importance of a winning mindset. Simply being classified as a good team is not enough; true success lies in the ability to achieve victories on the field, which requires dedication, strategy, and a commitment to excellence.
In practice
Use this quote in a motivational speech for a sports team to encourage them to focus on winning.
To be a successful coach you should be and look prepared. You must be a man of integrity. Never break your word. Don't have two sets of standards. Remember you don't handle players-you handle pets. You deal with players. Stand up for your players. Show them you care-on and off the court. Very important-it's not 'how' or 'what' you say but what they absorb.
If you want to be a Champion, you've got to feel like one, you've got to act like one, you've got to look like one.
I don't believe in statistics. There are too many factors that can't be measured. You can't measure a ballplayer's heart.
They said you have to use your five best players but I found you win with the five who fit together the best.
It's not what you tell your players that counts. It's what they hear.
To a father, when a child dies, the future dies; to a child when a parent dies, the past dies.
Every match I go into, I'm the huge favorite. I lose a set and it's, like, crazy.
If you don't take risks you won't achieve anything.
You have to hit the fastball to play in the big leagues.
If you are honest with yourself and can look into a mirror and believe that you have given 100 percent, you should feel proud. If you cannot, then there is more work to be done.
Growth is the great separator between those who succeed and those who do not. When I see a person beginning to separate themselves from the pack, it's almost always due to personal growth.
You should always have a product that has nothing to do with who you are or what people think about you... so that you never start thinking that your product is you, or your fame or your aura.
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