Penny Hardaway

“I can scream and yell that I can still play, but unless I prove it, people will say, 'Yeah, Penny, whatever.'”

“That's my job as a veteran in the league - to help make the young guys better.”

“I like to speed teams up. I don't like them to get in their rhythm.”

“I made it real clear I wanted to play in Orlando. Part of it was Shaq. But I also just liked Orlando. It's not all glitzy and reminds me of Memphis.”

“I love basketball, and I didn't get a chance to finish my career the way I wanted.”

“Talk about full circle, I never saw this coming. It wasn't like I said, 'Someday, I want to be the head coach at the University of Memphis.'”

“I was an introvert.”

“Personally, I just want to stay healthy.”

“I just call it like I see it.”

“People think I'm soft and bailed out on basketball. But it was five knee surgeries.”

“I feel like I can play point guard for any team in the league and average a double-double.”

“As an athlete, the body can fail you. I know. The mind and your education will be there to keep carrying you.”

“I keep myself in shape. I love the game of basketball, and I really feel like it doesn't matter about your age.”

“I have two people that I mainly look up to: Magic Johnson is one of them. He just blew everything out of the water. He didn't make much money in basketball, but since basketball has been over, he's investing in the community and making a lot of money at the same time. The next one I look up to is Sean Combs, who has always been a hustler.”

“Jerry Sloan was a guy that I always respected, but I thought he was mean. Like, he was a guy that was just no nonsense. When coach and I got closer during the Olympics, I said, 'Coach, I always just thought you were this mean guy, but it was really nice to get to know you and your family.'”

“Of course you want people to notice you're back, and you're playing well just to be respected. Because I was an All-Star, a first-team All-NBA guy. But I don't need the media putting a spotlight on me.”

“When Grant Hill came back to Orlando after having all of his surgeries, I was the first person to call him and congratulate him for making it back. It seemed like nobody cared about what I was dealing with.”

“The college kids are recruiting each other. When they go to a school, they start recruiting each other.”

“I was into 'In Living Color,' 'Martin,' the 'Ace Ventura' movies. I love slapstick stuff, too: 'Naked Gun' and 'Caddyshack.'”

“I wasn't able to explode, jump, run - not even walk without pain being in the back of my leg. Every time I bent my leg, even in a walking motion, I was wondering what was wrong with me. But I stuck with it.”