Jerry West

“I remember, years ago, if I had had an opportunity to leave the Lakers, I would have left for one reason: because I did not like an owner that was not telling me the truth. And it would have made no difference what they would have offered me; I would have left.”

“I see people that have success, and I see how poised and polished they are and how they handle it. I wonder inside if they feel the same way that I feel.”

“I have often wondered why I was never captain of the Lakers.”

“I'm not one who likes to be honored, to be honest with you. That's never been who I am.”

“You can't get much done in life if you only work on the days when you feel good.”

“I hated to miss games... at the height of my career, I missed a lot of games due to... just a hamstring pull. And I hated sitting out. I just hated it. You play for your team, but you also play for the people who attend the games.”

“I'm a Gemini. Know what that means? There are two very different sides to me.”

“I went a few times, but I felt there was no way that any therapist could understand my particular torment and also felt in some respects they were sicker than I was.”

“If I'm not nervous, if I don't have at least a little bit of the same self-doubt and anxious feelings I had when I started playing, then it will be time for me to go on. I must have that tension.”

“The season is a beast within itself. It's not the quickest race; it's a marathon. In the playoffs - if you're fortunate enough to make the playoffs - that's more like a dash. You have to concentrate on one opponent. When they're done, you have to concentrate on another one.”

“When the Warriors are on, my wife keeps away from me. I'm a rabid fan, and my language sometimes is not too good.”

“If you don't want to win, you don't want to be around me.”

“Confidence is a lot of this game or any game. If you don't think you can, you won't.”

“Fear of failure, it's the greatest motivational tool. It drives me and drives me and drives me.”

“I would never stay under circumstances where I felt I was a figurehead and might look good in your team media guide. I don't want to be that. I do want to contribute, and if I don't contribute, I'll walk away from it. If I don't feel welcomed, I'll walk away from it.”

“I think, at the end of the day, when you hear the same voice all the time, it goes in one ear and out the other when you're a player.”

“I've been so low sometimes and when everyone else would be so high because I didn't like myself.”

“That's a strong sign of a good coach, to let an assistant participate. It shows his confidence in the coach's ability not to have to dominate everything.”

“Everyone always says you have to be on the best team, the team that wins. Oh, no, no, no. I disagree with that.”

“I enjoy winning, but more importantly, I enjoy the people I'm around.”