Top 80 Quotes & Sayings by Ben Howland
Explore popular quotes and sayings by an American coach Ben Howland.
Last updated on December 22, 2024.
There are things that I will think about, that I have been a part of because I was the head coach at UCLA, that I will always cherish. I grew up loving this program as a kid.
I love to visit New York, but Los Angeles, to me, is a great city.
This is UCLA. The expectations are higher here than anywhere. The amount of success both in terms of championships and wins as well as success off the floor has been second to none in college basketball. I knew that when I took this job. I know the expectation level, and no one has higher expectations than I do.
You have more control of things if you play defense. And you can control how you play defense, too, with effort and preparation.
Las Vegas is a big draw. There are a lot things to do there other than basketball.
The Reeves Nelson debacle, that hurt me. There are certain things regarding him that I couldn't say then and still can't. But I should have pulled the plug on him after his sophomore year. We tried to make it work, but we couldn't make it happen.
I just like to win.
I always think I put more pressure on myself than I feel from anywhere else.
You can never blame somebody for wanting to go home.
Northern Arizona was a job no one had ever survived, and a lot of people said I was crazy to take it. But to build a program and win there gave me a lot of confidence when people said we couldn't do it at Pitt.
I don't always show my emotion. You don't always get to see it.
I don't know where people got that I didn't have a good relationship with my players. I'm demanding, yes; I'm on their butt. I expect 100%, but they all knew I loved them, I cared for them, and I'll always be there for them.
I was raised to believe you are supposed to love everybody.
How many people do you know who love their jobs? Did your dad love his job? Was he passionate about it? Because I am. I love it. I love the relationships. I love teaching. I love the competition. I love everything about it.
Pittsburgh is a football town.
You should want to run if you're a player, shouldn't you, on offense?
My dad taught not only tolerance but appreciation for every human being.
It's hard to get a job. There are more lawyers within a five-mile radius of wherever you're sitting than there are Division I jobs.
It's very painful to lose, and it's a very difficult process to go through, especially at a place like UCLA where the standards are very high.
I'm a good coach. I do the right things for my players, and I try to support them; I try to help them almost to a fault.
Putting your feet in ice cold water? That's not fun.
It still comes down to attracting players, and UCLA can attract players as well as any place in the country.
There's no question that I've made mistakes along the way when you look at recruiting in terms of evaluations of players or character in an instance or two.
We need to play tough defense and have a sound offense. But mostly, we have to outrebound the other team.
For the most part, I've been very, very blessed and been lucky to have great kids. We want to recruit great kids, good people. For the most part, we've done that.
If you went and did a microscopic investigative report at Kentucky, Kansas, Duke, Carolina, Indiana - what are you talking about? You're always going to have some stuff come out that will be looked upon as not being good.
I had a relationship with John Wooden. I spoke at his memorial service.
I watch a lot of games and analyze a lot.
You're not going to see Bill Walton or Kareem coming in every three years. Those days are over. That's what makes the job so difficult. But it's the dream job for anyone who has spent a career in coaching and has a sense of what UCLA means.
My first introduction to Russell Westbrook was as a leader. It was pretty impressive.
That's AAU ball. That's what you do: 'I want to get out there first and score.' You see it in games during the summer. There are not a lot of great blockouts going on.
Winning, to me, is relief; losing is like dying. It's gut-wrenching.
Usually you have a feel for what a kid's abilities are by the end of their sophomore year.
We've got to get everybody to sacrifice, be on same page, be a team.
I have a strong belief in God.
When you take over a screwed-up situation, you need time.
I get to work with the best and the brightest at UCLA. We get to recruit great kids, and that makes coaching very fun for me.
I can't think of much higher praise to give a player than to say, 'This point guard reminds me of Jason Kidd.'
I will never leave UCLA and will stay at UCLA as long they will have me.
One thing a shooter loves is to make his first shot. He makes his first shot from three; that builds confidence.
One thing I've always prided myself on is understanding that to have success, you have to have high-character kids.
You're only as good as your next game.
There's no question we made a couple mistakes there at UCLA at the very end.
One of the very best things about being a coach or student-athlete at UCLA is if you need medical attention, you won't find any better place in the country than at the incomparable UCLA Medical Center.
I coached Brandin Knight at Pitt, who was unbelievable, and also Carl Krauser.
I know I'm a really good coach.
That's why I'm here at UCLA - to help them win a national championship.
UCLA will always be involved with great players, and those players always draw scrutiny. That's just the way it is.
No one is perfect. I would never claim to be that person.
Tweeting - let's be honest: it's like I'm the center of the universe; it's all about me. Everybody is listening to my every thought, and my current thought at this very moment is... it's ridiculous.
Everybody makes mistakes. I'm definitely not perfect.
My team at Pittsburgh is the greatest example of unselfishness and giving of oneself. They bought into that, and it's brought those kids championships, and it's brought all those kids so much glory.
Field-goal percentage is very important.
At UCLA, there will always be high expectations. That's why you want to play here or coach here.
What is the NCAA going to do a program if a kid leaves before two years. You can't control it. The NBA is the one that has to control it.
This is always one of my big pet peeves is that 65% of NBA players, three years out of the NBA, are broke. I mean, so, maybe maturing a little more on the front end and getting an education might serve you well down the road.
I'm a good person and a good guy.
Typically, you'll see that zones work better in November than in February. As the season goes on, teams get better and better at attacking zones, and it becomes harder to become an effective zone defense as the season progresses. But early on, it can be can good at times.
Thing about New York is it is so exciting with so much to do.
The number one thing in recruiting in terms of making it a great job is players in your own area.
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