Tom Izzo

“I love Jim Schwartz. I've gotten to know him, I think he's an awesome coach.”

“As white Americans, we sometimes think it's enough to say that we aren't racist. But that's selfish - that's just being worried about ourselves.”

“Usually players make the most progress in the summer between their freshmen and sophomore seasons.”

“When I grew up, you trusted anyone of authority. Kids don't trust people any more, and I don't blame them. We have to earn their trust, and it takes time.”

“I'm a pizza guy, so yes, I love cheese!”

“I spent years sleeping with both eyes open.”

“In 2009 we were pretty good but North Carolina would have beaten some NBA teams that year.”

“All I've got to make sure I do is what's best for my team and the university I work at. I want to do that each and every day.”

“You've got to fight through some adversity. You've got to have some tough times. You've got to have some rainy days.”

“When your two major sports, your two revenue sports, are going well, that bodes well for the whole university.”

“I get out a lot recruiting. Sometimes it's long distance, sometimes it close.”

“The one thing that my parents have told me and I try to tell my kids it doesn't matter how much fame, money, and anything else you have, friends, marriage, it doesn't, none of it matters compared to your health, cause without it nothing matters.”

“Redshirt years, even though they are painful to go through, when you do go through them, if you are a driven guy, you can get a lot out of them.”

“It's easy to become a better basketball player but harder to become a better teammate or person.”

“With the new social media way of doing things, kids are seeing things a lot more, a lot quicker. So I think we as coaches have to adjust to it some way.”

“Looking at the big picture, I know God put me in the right spot, with the right mentor.”

“If you ever get a chance to do something outside the box... I say step outside the box.”

“You've got to be a sneakerhead if you're a coach and you're dealing with 16 to 22-year-olds and selfishly, I kind of like them myself.”

“I try to tell my guys, don't wish your way out of high school. You never get to go back to high school. Don't wish your way out of college; you never go back to be a college student. You may go back to get more education, but you don't get the four years of being a college student.”

“All that being a college coach has done, is it's reaffirmed the need to take care of our young people. They're the ones that are going to make a difference. We spend a lot of time blaming them for stuff, and not enough time mentoring them and helping them stand on their own two feet.”