I don't think about the record, because winning games has to be our focus, and if we lost focus thinking about that record, I would really regret it. How will I feel later on? People tell me it will mean a lot after I retire, for the kids and me. But to me, it's just a stat. It's something people enjoy talking about. Me? I just enjoy playing.
John Stockton
I never felt I was better than anybody, but I always felt I could compete with anybody.
I don't care if people even discuss what I did. But if anyone is ever sitting around the kitchen table talking about my career, I hope they say they enjoyed watching me play. That's good enough.
The key word is 'control.' I have to get to the point where I can do it like Magic does. That means penetrating, scoring more, taking over on offense once in a while, increasing my range on the outside shot to open things up for the drive.
Once I came to Salt Lake City, I didn't want to go anywhere else. It was home sweet home for me.
I just play. I'm not one to think about it. If I get one assist and we win, that's great. Otherwise, I could care less.
I haven't played quarterback since eighth or ninth grade. I didn't see it get much attention when I completed a pass then.
I've been lucky to have great coaching, great teammates, and a desire to keep getting better. That, slowly over time, helped me grow from an average high school player to the NBA.
For me, the timing has been good, but I also feel very lucky to be playing in Utah. We have a good team with tremendous players who like to win.
You can't afford to hop around and act like a kid when you have to get back on defense and worry about the other parts of the game. But at the end, when the buzzer sounds, you have the luxury of hopping around and looking foolish for a while.
You thrive off everybody on your team. If one guy's playing well, that makes your job easier. If a guy's shooting well, it makes your job easier. If a guy's rebounding well, it makes your job easier.
I'm a bartender's son. Some things you never forget.
I was always the kid dribbling the ball on the sidelines, hoping someone would pick me. I'd go with my older brother to the gym or park, and when I went out there, I'd pass the ball so I could get picked again.
It's not win or die at my house. We're all competitive, but it's not the type to get stressed out by it.
When you're younger, you might make some shots you're not normally capable of, because you're more fluid, maybe stronger, maybe faster. As you get older, you learn not to take those crazy shots.
I think everybody should have the attitude that you can't allow yourself to be hurt. You avoid a lot just with that attitude.
Just because everybody else does something isn't a good enough reason to do anything.
I don't go home to parades.
I've played games where I thought I played one of my better games, and statistically, there's nothing there, and vice versa. I've never based how I feel about my performance on stats.
I try to exploit things against everybody; that's part of the game: beat the guy that guards me while you're beating their team.
I enjoy coaching.
You have a different personality in front of the world than you do in front of your pals at home. I like to keep them separate.
I didn't want to get caught up in the mind-set that, 'Wait a minute, I'm ahead of Magic. I better slow down.'
I have an ego like everyone else. I want to be recognized as a good ballplayer.
I have a great respect for people that write. I don't know how they do it every day... or do novels that they have to use their minds instead of just their memories. It's tough duty.
Essentially, when you join a team, you're making a commitment to your team. You can't take that lightly.
If you start chasing around trying to get steals for your own benefit, then you really put your defense at a disadvantage. It's not a big thing for me; if it happens, great.
I know my first years sitting on the bench, largely behind Rickey Green, was a great learning tool for me.
To be a great player and a great scorer, you have to find ways to get yourself open and get shots off. It's a dog fight.
I was thinking back when Karl Malone and I, when one of us would be in the weight room early in the morning, and the other one wasn't there, the first comment to the other person would be, 'It's mighty lonely up here.'
If you think you're doing everything right, then you have a tendency to stand pat.
I think there are a lot of ways to play the PG position. Scoring first is a way that works for them and their teams. I personally like to watch PGs that like to work for others.
I think I've preserved most of my private life, and I think that's still important for me, and that's still important for my family.
The games can go any way. As we know in this league, you can win by 30 or lose by 30 the next night. That is just the way the league is.
The main thing I worry about with the shoes I wear is comfort. What you're comfortable wearing is what you're going to play your best in.
You don't get this opportunity many times in life to compete against the best in the world every night. I certainly didn't expect to have 10 or 11 years of chances at it, so I don't want to take that for granted.
I think records are irrelevant, but I'm being approached about it all the time. If I could avoid it, that would be great.
I don't judge my performance on how many assists I have or how many points I have.
You can find advantages to being small.
I never thought I'd make it in the NBA, so everything else is gravy.
The game's a beautiful game when five guys go out there and give something of themselves so that you can win.
I want my kids to have a life like I did growing up. The greatest gift I was given in life was from my parents. Though I can't match them, I'd like to be that kind of parent.
Struggles are what made everything worth while.
All I know is the same lessons you need to learn at Little League basketball, you need to learn at the upper levels. It's the little things you learn when you're little that apply in college.
Mostly, I go in the weight room and visit.
My brother thundered me in everything most of my life. He was a great carrot out in front of me. All I wanted to do, ever, was beat him at anything.
I'm not a cerebral player. When I'm out on the floor, I try to play.
Depending on the point in the game and what's necessary, if you can deliver the play, whatever that is - heck, if it's a screen - and you get a guy open, and he scores a big basket for you, that gives me as much of a charge as anything.
I heal quickly, and I stay in good shape, and I will stay in good shape.
I've benefited from great coaches my whole life, starting in sixth grade. To be able to pass that on is a neat experience for me.
